It’s been only a few months since the release of London-Tokyo-and-Jersey-based four-piece-but-sometimes-five-piece Yuck’s debut album hit the scenes and frontman Daniel Blumberg has already begun a side project of his own. This bitch-on-the-side, dubbed Oupa, is quite different from 90’s rock-inspired jams that Yuck pumps out though. Which I guess just goes to show what a musician Blumberg is. His debut, Forget, was released by Fat Possum Records three days ago. There’s something delicate and longing about it, like he’s been holding onto a secret pain for some time. It makes you want to stretch out the knots in your muscles, yet at the same retreat into some dark cave of solitude and feel bad for yourself. His voice and the soft piano that accompany it elicit emotion without even needing to pay attention to what he’s actually saying. It has a way of hollowing you out, making you wish for a catharsis. It’s a complete sensory experience that makes you feel vulnerable, like you’ve been stripped bare, curled on the floor of a glass mansion enshrouded by a winter landscape. I think maybe Blumberg took a load of sleep medication and contemplated everything shitty in the world and turned it into music. Yet there’s something pretty about it that could numb your brain and aching muscles and steadily lull you to sleep. This is definitely music for a mood. Give it a listen, take it in. It just might be something you’ll want to come back to someday soon.

Oupa – Physical from Boiled Egg on Vimeo.

Oupa – Windows from Boiled Egg on Vimeo.

Forget

Josh Hodges (Middle)

Portland-based synth-pop trio Starfucker is one of those bands you develop a relationship with just listening to over the years. They’re one of those rare bands on the indie scene that you could live off of if their music was converted into a food stuff. And everything they’ve made up this point has been absolutely delicious. Initially formed as frontman Josh Hodges’ solo project, their self-titled debut was released in 2008, with a follow-up Reptilians that was officially released in March of this year. Reptilians remains one of C+A+D’s favorite albums of the year so naturally we jumped at opportunity to interview them. See what Josh had to say:

C+A+D: I’ve noticed a lot of great indie comes from Portland. Is there something in the water or what?
Josh: It rains a lot. So there is a lot of time to spend indoors making music.

C+A+D: I know Ryan Dobrowski of Blind Pilot used to play with you in Sexton Blake. Do you know a lot of other Portland bands? How do you learn from each other?
Josh: Ya, it’s pretty incestuous here. I feel like everybody kind of knows everybody.

C+A+D: How did you guys meet? What music/bands do you usually listen to or get inspiration from?
Josh: We all met different ways. Some of us through what we were just talking about, seeing each other in our different bands and deciding to make music together. We listen to the southern hip hop station on pandora for that motivational vibe.

C+A+D:Your music has a very unique, dreamlike quality. How have you developed your sound over the years?
Josh: I have no idea. I just keep striving to make an album I’m totally happy with. I think I’m getting closer with each one…maybe.

C+A+D: You’ve changed your title several times over the past three years. Who came up with “Starfucker” and what made you settle on that as your official title?
Josh: We didn’t really change it. It’s always been starfucker. That other shit was a prank. I was on tour with another band and some weird LA music “biz” girl who was doing something or other on the tour, with much pride, called herself a starfucker for fucking some old ass famous dude, and it just really stuck with me. It’s impressive what people do to be associated with fame.

C+A+D: You generated a lot of buzz in the press for having an explicative in your title. What do your parents think about the name of your band?
Josh: My mom loves it, but she is a hippy.

C+A+D: You’ve been known to occasionally wear women’s clothing at shows. Is there a particular reason for this or are you simply trying to see how far you can push the envelope?
Josh: we all grew up around it. my uncle is a liza minnelli impersonator at Darcelle’s XV, the longest running female impersonator club in the universe.

C+A+D: What’s your reaction to comparisons made between you and bands like MGMT and Passion Pit?
Josh: I’d rather be compared to my little pony-boy, but what can you do…i like MGMT a lot.

C+A+D: Whose idea was it to include Alan Watts’ philosophical quotes throughout the album? Is there a particular philosophy that drives your music?
Josh: A few years ago I started having these weird reoccurring dreams where Alan Watts was like a guide or friend, trying to free me from the shackles of this strange existence. Every time I’d get close he’d be there encouraging me, saying all I needed to do was let go of everything and basically let my ego die. At the last second, I’d see an ex of mine who I was particularly sexually attached to. I couldn’t help my self, I’d just go there and end up staying in this form. Even though I’m not ready to let go I appreciate his effort.

C+A+D: You guys have been pretty busy touring recently. What’s the best part about being on tour? The worst? Is there a particular show that stands out in your mind as particularly awesome?
Josh: The best part for me is that it feels like recess, like I don’t have to think about the rest of my life. Just music- simple.

C+A+D: What happened at that show where Shawn broke his teeth on the cymbal? Hahah How did you go about taking care of that?
Josh: It was the last show of a really long tour and Shawn and Keil were kicking over all the drums during our last song and a cymbal basically just sliced through his teeth. He was able to find some cheap local place to fix it up for him. his new teeth are better than his old ones.

C+A+D: Do you guys have any big plans or desires for the future? Anywhere you want to be?
Josh: We have the same desire we had when we started out: to travel and play music. So, we hope to be getting over to Europe this fall and anywhere else that will have us. We’d really love to head to South America, Columbia, Brazil.

C+A+D: If you weren’t musicians what would be your career of choice?
Josh: Keil would be a high school teacher, Shawn would probably still be doing something in music, I’d probably be homeless.

C+A+D: If you could only play one of your songs for the rest of your career which would it be and why?
Josh: Haha, wow. Sounds like a torture scenario..like “no exit” or something. That would be really hard to answer. Maybe “Hard smart beta” cause I get to play drums on that one and it’s instrumental so would take longer to induce suicide.

Here’s a video we got of “Hard Smart Beta” from Outside Lands:

C+A+D: Finally: you’re stranded on an island with only one album and one bottle of alcohol. What would you guys choose?
Josh: I’d choose red wine, a big ass box of it if i only get 1, and this awesome mix cd a friend made for me. I know the mix is kind of cheating, but it’s honest.
Thanks!!!!

One of the coolest new bands on the indie scene in my opinion is Santa Barbara’s Gardens & Villa. They’ve harnessed this mind bending sound that pushes limits without being unrelatable or unlistenable. Quite the opposite actually. Their self-titled debut dropped last month, I’m expecting nothing but big things from these guys.

Orange Blossom

San Francisco’s Painted Palms presents a sort of ethereal ambience that could make you question the existence of gravity. Their recent EP Canopy is seething and ether-infused. It is a deliriously delicious escape, dreamy and fantastical. There’s a vague sort of element of audacity in the vocals that bounce against echoes and claps and high pitched synth. Its electro-pop sound is akin to that of Animal Collective but at times has more of a chill-wave feel. The trio has also released covers and remixes of indie essentials such as Yeasayer, Dirty Projectors and Starfucker. Their sound is carefully mastered and the EP is well constructed. Its escapist fizz is perfectly tailored for a summer day off.

Free Candy

All of Us

Falling Asleep

Julius by Starfucker (Painted Palms Remix)

I Will Truck (Dirty Projectors Cover)

Since they first stepped foot onto the scene in 2006, Seattle’s Band of Horses has been a difficult outfit to compete with. An indie essential, they have a sound that is not easily missed; gentle and mournful what they have established is a comfort zone. Literally. You can’t help but feel at home listening to them. Their third effort, Infinite Arms, was released last year. They’re not pushing the envelope in any way; in fact they embody a sort of timelessness in that they don’t seem to age. Many bands tend to try too hard after the first effort and slump and then seek a sort of redemption with later albums if they don’t give up all together. Band of Horses has yet to experience this because they have yet to put anything out that deviates from what they’ve already established. And honestly, they don’t need to try. Their lyrical mastery is a driving force of the album. Each song, intricately contagious and melodically twangy, is charged with a subtle optimism that has the power to set the tempo for your day. Infinite Arms, though it received mediocre reviews, accused of a lack of oomph, is every bit a masterpiece as their previous efforts. It may still sit in the shadow of Cease to Begin, but it is not one to be ignored. It’s less arid and spacey than the first two, with more orchestral reverb and a rock sensibility to fill the spaces that left earlier songs hollow (even though that in itself is why many of their songs were so poignant to begin with). Songs like Blue Beard and the title track feel like they could fit right in with either of the first two albums while songs like Dilly and Laredo display much more of a pop appeal. If you missed this album when it was released, it’s not too late to pick it up. Listen to it when you fall asleep. You’re almost guaranteed good dreams.

Tracklist

1. Factory
2. Compliments
3. Laredo
4. Blue Beard
5. On My Way Back Home
6. Infinite Arms
7. Dilly
8. Evening Kitchen
9. Older
10. For Annabelle
11. NW Apt.
12. Neighbor

Free Candy

Detlef Schrempf

Britpop sensations Egyptian Hip Hop have only been on the scene for a year and yet already seem to be an adequate illustration of the current state and future of music. When they first hit the scene, they were the perfect embodiment of what was in vogue in Europe years ago: electronic-indie made more for the sake of movement and a physical experience than anything else. In February of this year they released an EP, stripped of their electronica appeal, moving onto something much more newwave synth-based than ’80s pop inspired. The music they’ve officially released, especially as of this year, is interesting because it does not cling to any particular era of influence. It is newwave but not in a way that tries hard to sound like it belongs in the future. It’s sort of stragly and effortless in such a way that youths of the current time can find it especially relatable. It’s got a sort of free-spirited don’t-care-what-you-think-of-us sort of sound and ultimately that’s what will win you over. At first if might sound cheap concoction of The Rapture and Does It Offend You, Yeah? but it just might eventually nudge its way into favorites.

Rad Pitt

Heavenly

It wouldn’t be hyperbolic to say that The Strokes’ debut Is This It? is a musical epoch. Many of us can remember the first time we heard it and the ensuing obsession that became a lasting addiction. The Strokes, young and unintentionally cool, kicking over mic stands (or more literally picking them up and throwing them), became a band that would shape a generation’s music. Many prominent figures in the indie scene today (i.e., Arctic Monkeys, and Tokyo Police Club, etc.) credit them as a major influence. Is This It?, one of the few flawless albums to date, is nearing its ten year anniversary this Saturday and in that spirit, Stereogum asked 11 indie bands to cover each track. Each track is carefully and respectfully reinvented.

STROKED: A Tribute To Is This It? .zip

^grab the whole thing^ *click*click*

1. Peter Bjorn & John – Is This It? Delightful Choice!
A glossy opener, it’s evident that Swedish trio Peter Bjorn & John did not take the task of covering the Strokes lightly. They do not deviate from the original track, though it is sped up and revamped with electric guitars and a synthy twist. It is clear they were not trying to meddle with the originality of the song. “We just wanted to play it as good as we could,” John Erikson told Stereogum. It’s nothing game changing but it is a job well done.

2. Chelsea Wolfe – The Modern Age
Chelsea Wolfe takes a sedated take on “The Modern Age.” It’s lo-fi and heavy like something from a bad dream, but in a surprisingly cool way. It’s not utterly shocking to hear that she had been taking “lots of heavy cough syrup” when she recorded it.

3. Frankie Rose – Soma Delightful Choice!
Frankie Rose’s sugar-coated take on “Soma” is a sort of shimmering memory. It’s enjoyable and nostalgic in a sort of 1990’s romantic comedy kinda way, but not as formulaic. Emphasis on synth and heavy drums serves to keep the song fast-moving and smooth but also utterly enjoyable.

4. Real Estate – Barely Legal Delightful Choice!
According to Martin Courtney, Real Estate was influenced by the Strokes from the beginning, starting a Strokes coverband at 15. They did a really nice job of making “Barely” Legal” their own. It embraces the edge that makes Real Estate such a unique (and kickass) band, meanwhile maintaining the original vibes of the song.

5. Wise Blood – Someday
Wise Blood’s take on “Someday” is nearly a new track entirely. It’s edgy and indie, embellished and austere. It’s a complex arrangement but it holds onto the original structure of the song. “I decided to try and stick with the way the song develops,” Chris Laufman said.

6. Austra – Alone, Together
Katie Stelmanis said she had a tough time with the cover but eventually embraced it as an Austra song. It has definitely been tailored to her style, but it succeeds in still managing to sound like the original Strokes song, quite a feat when refashioning something already considered flawless.

7. The Morning Benders – Last Nite Delightful Choice!
San Francisco natives the Morning Benders dissembled the album’s first single “Last Nite” and restructured it into an undeniably fun pop jam. They took the seemingly sporadic assembly of the original track and organized it into something structured but pretty damn catchy.

8. Owen Pallet – Hard To Explain
Owen Pallet’s rendition of “Hard To Explain” is a really lovely classical composition. It opens with the original melody delivered by violins and Pallet’s emotion-driven vocals. It really manages to harness the sentiment of the song in a beautiful way.

9. Heems – New York City Cops
Heems takes a “fuck tha police” approach to “New York City Cops,” a song that originally lamented that “New York City cops ain’t too smart.” All Himanshu Suri had to say about what influenced his interpretation of the song:

“Michael Stewart, Eleanor Bumpurs, Amadou Diallo, Patrick Dorismond, Alberta Spruill, Timothy Stansbury, Abner Louima, Sean Bell, Ousmane Zongo, Randolph Evans, Anthony Baez, Clifford Glover, and Fermin Arzou were senselessly beaten or killed by the NYPD while unarmed.”

10. Deradoorian – Trying Your Luck
Deradoorian’s rendition of “Trying Your Luck” is slightly more lethargic than the original, with a subtle sort of reggae twist. It’s well structured, gleaned and sweetly catchy. It shifts the emphasis on the lyrics in such a way that it seems less mournful and more optimistic than the original.

11. Computer Magic – Take It Or Leave It Delightful Choice!
Computer Magic is perhaps most suited to cover the album’s closing track. Newwave and futuristic it is a perfect testament to the timelessness of the album. Yet Danielle Johnson still manages to make it her own. Like every other song on the tribute, uniquely refurbished, it offers much more than a cover to a classic song.