I was pleasantly surprised by the new Liars disc which, in addition to their debut, is miles more accessible than either of their last two releases, Drum’s Not Dead and They Were Wrong, So We Drowned. For their new one, it seems as if they dug back through the annals of rock history and spent some time listening to dark underground classics like Sonic Youth’s EVOL and Public Image Limited’s The Flowers Of Romance. There are a few balls-out rockers here, a few noisy experimental tracks and a song, “Houseclouds”, which almost begs for a dance remix. Still, this is heady stuff. It’s overbearingly clad in black and won’t be everyone’s cup of tea but isn’t nearly as caustic as they’ve been on previous releases.
This week’s selection, “Freak Out”, sounds as if could have been pulled straight from The Jesus And Mary Chain’s Psychocandy, marrying a pop melody with a wall of feedback. If any of Liars previous output has put you off, I invite you to give this new one a chance. They definitely went to school before recording it, and the result is a more palatable disc destined to reach a wider audience.
This 5-piece electro-pop outfit from London was recently nominated for the prestigious Mercury Prize award in the U.K. You’ve probably already fallen in love with the band’s first single “Ice Cream”, even if you don’t know it’s them! The track was widely used in an Intel commercial campaign earlier this year.
Their debut album “Fantastic Playroom” is overflowing with infectious beats and lead singer Tahita Bulmer reminds me of a young Debbie Harry (although at times she almost sounds spot-on like Shirley Manson). On the second proper single from their debut, I’m not entirely sure what Tahita is going on about when she sings “Don’t speak ’cause your mind is amazing”, but it hardly matters. Who has time to think about the lyrics when you can’t stop shakin’ your ass?
I have always been an on again / off again fan of the Fiery Furnaces. I know that the Friedbergers get a kick out of being odd and offbeat most of the time, but I certainly dig their more accessible stuff the most. I think that is why I have always loved the straightforward punch of a song like Single Again, from thier EP a couple years ago. I feel the same way about this new song from the band, Ex-Guru.
Once again it is pretty straightforward, for FF I guess and it is really upbeat, fun and over the top catchy. And I should not leave out the fact that there is a synthesizer storm of sorts midway through the tune, highly recommended indeed. Admittedly, Eleanor does not have to do too much to win me over, but this song makes me hungry for the new album. The new disc, Widow City arrives on October 9th, the same day Matt & Eleanor will be here in town at the Southgate House for a show, count me in!
New music today focuses in on the new album from Liars, which is a self titled album and is available in stores right now from Mute Records.
This is the fourth full length album from Liars and the follow up to their 2006 effort, Drums Not Dead.
This new album is easily the most accessible and poppy of any previous Liars albums.
Here are a few reviewers quotes about the new album.
“If it doesn’t quite confound like “They Were Wrong” or thrill like “Drum’s Not Dead,” Liars still finds the band ignoring whatever you thought you wanted or needed from them, and doing what they damn well please.” - Pitchfork
“Liars is an ingenuous reflection of a band in total control of their wild creativity.” - Lost At Sea
“For Liars, forgoing heady concepts and willful obtuseness–embracing rock music instead of deconstructing it–may actually be the boldest move yet.”- The Onion
Alex Brown Church has been making music with L.A. rockers Irving for the past several years, but lately he has been focusing on his own band.
When recording, Alex played most of the instruments himself. He has since crafted a talented band of musicians to take out on the road. The band were in the midwest finishing up a tour with pals (and labelmates) Silversun Pickups when they stopped in.
This session features cuts off the upcoming album Leaves In The River.
Yesterday marked the launch of WOXY.com on HD2 radio here in the Cincinnati area. It has been a long strange trip for WOXY from years as the terrestrial 97X to the current incarnation as WOXY.com online and worldwide. We are really excited to be a part of HD Radio now as well and if you are in the Cincinnati area and want to be able to listen, here is a good spot to grab a affordable and portable radio for just 100$.
Just in case you don’t know what HD Radio is, and many still do not, here is a short description.
HD Radio technology enables AM and FM radio stations to broadcast their programs digitally; a tremendous leap in technology from today’s familiar analog broadcasts.
We are always happy with how our lounge sessions sound in the end. Our sound engineer Brian Niesz does a great job. So it is very cool to have one of the songs that was recorded here in the studio make it to a great compilation CD.
The CD is being put out by Filter and Urban Outfitters and features tons of great bands. This is the fourth installment in the Give.Listen.Help series and features Rilo Kiley, Band Of Horses, Silversun Pickups, Interpol, Beastie Boys and many more. The song that was recorded here in studio is from The A-Sides session, which you can download in it’s entirety below. The CD is available now in all branches of Urban Outfitters for $14 with $12.88 of every CD purchase going to The Art of Elysium.
When Ra Ra Riot were in town recently and played with Mason Proper over at Alchemize, I was DJing there after the show wrapped up. It sort of turned into a late night dance-off and I can tell you that members of both bands know how to bust a move. The RRR crew asked for a mix cd of some of the tracks I was playing at the bar for their drive out of town.
Flash forward to the other day when I got an e-mail that said “After we heard all of those great remixes you played we had to start getting some of our own!” This track, originally from their self-titled EP, is given the remix treatment by RAC (the Remix Artist Collective) who have also recently put their own spin on songs from The Shins, Bloc Party, and Tokyo Police Club.
Joe Long - Jose Gonzalez “Down The Line” from the CD In Our Nature.
The first time I heard this new song, I commented that it was exactally what I expected from Jose Gonzalez. And honestly, that is just perfect for me. I was a big fan of the last album from Gonzalez so naturally I am excited to hear what this new one, In Our Nature, will bring. If this first song is any indication, it will be bringing more smooth acoustic guitar with Gonzalez’s soft haunting vocals overlapping.
Take a peek at the video for the song, “Down The Line.” The video is a bit odd to say the least, but after finding out that it is based on the story “Manhog Beyond The Face” by Jim Woodring, it at least made some sense.
New Music looks at the latest album from The New Pornographers today, released yesterday and titled, Challengers
This is the 4th full length effort from the so called “supergroup” made up of Destroyer’s Dan Bejar, A.C. Newman, and Neko Case among others.
A.C Newman again takes care of the majority of the songwriting on this album, penning 9 of the 12 songs.
Here are some reviewers quotes about the new album……
“More cinematic than “Twin Cinema,” more cohesive than any other record released this year, Challengers is so very good it almost compels you to think in the cliches of music criticism.” -Popmatters
“Challengers is their biggest grower yet, a dense collection of carefully constructed pop and brain power pop.” - AllMusicGuide
“This record might be a challenge for fans of the band’s hit-filled history and at times drifts dangerously close to the dreaded adult contemporary of your local Gap store, but give Challengers some growing time and it proves to be the New Pornos’ prettiest record yet.” - Filter
Some of our message boarders got together recently up in Cleveland for a good time. Here we find Russ (Frizgolf) in blue and Aaron (adyonka) in green. Thanks guys!
Hey everyone, just wanted to take a second and remind you that our Flyaway contest is still rolling along. We have had a great response so far from you and really appreciate it but there is still lots of time left to get registered for the flyaway. Just in case you don’t know what I am talking about, here are the details again.
WOXY.com wants to fly you and a guest to join us at the inaugural MONOLITH FESTIVAL, September 14 and 15 at Red Rocks Amphitheater in Morrison, Colorado!
The festival will host over 50 bands on 5 stages and features The Flaming Lips, Cake, The Decemberists, Spoon, Kings Of Leon, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Editors, Art Brut and many more. WOXY.com has its own stage that we’ve curated to showcase up-and-coming bands like Ra Ra Riot, White Rabbits, Mobius Band, Flosstradamus, Forget Cassettes and others. With only 9000 tickets being sold, MONOLITH promises an exceptional and intimate festival experience that you don’t want to miss. So, head on over and get registered now, and remember, you have just 10 more days to do so!>
Mike Taylor - Liars - “Freak Out”, from the CD, Liars
Matt Shiv New Young Pony Club - - “The Bomb” from the CD Fantastic Playroom
Joe Long - The Fiery Furnaces, “Ex-Guru” from the CD Widow City. 
