Polar Bear Peepers Review & Exit The Ordinary Indie Artist of the Day

Zak Recommends: Polar Bear - Peepers

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Leaf Spain Records

Polar Bear are a five piece experimental jazz band that are led by drummer and composer Seb Rochford. Peepers is their fourth album. Led by Seb this is a group of five experienced, talented and creative musicians getting it done. The saxophone work of Pete Wareham & Mark Lockheart is superb. Wareham in particular is outstanding here. Rochford's percussion work is equally impressive and Leafcutter John's guitar work gives the sound a bit of a rock edge.



Polar Bear started out in 2004. They are based in London, England,

Tracks:
1 Happy For You • 4:09
2 Bap Bap Bap • 2:12
3 Drunken Pharoah • 3:26
4 The Love Didn't Go Anywhere • 7:00
5 A New Morning Will Come • 4:42
6 Peepers • 4:24
7 Bump • 0:38
8 Scream • 0:36
9 Hope Every Day Is a Happy New Year • 4:07
10 Want to Believe Everything • 4:36
11 Finding Our Feet • 6:38
12 All Here • 5:50

Official Website:  http://www.polarbearmusic.com/

Upcoming Shows:
27 Mar 2010 20:00 the firestation windsor
23 Apr 2010 20:00 ether festival free gig london
26 Apr 2010 20:00 jazz club hipnoza Katowice
2 May 2010 20:00 camden crawl camden london
3 May 2010 20:00 cheltenham jazz festival cheltenham
13 May 2010 20:00 rescue rooms nottingham

Exit The Ordinary - Indie Artists of the Day

Exit the Ordinary are an Alternative Indie rock band from Detroit. Their self titled album is out now and is available on iTunes, Amazon and Best Buy. They just signed a deal with MTV, E! & Oxygen networks so you could be seeing their songs on shows like The Hills etc. Also their tune 'The Place You Are' was selected for the movie "The Butterfly Effect 2" soundtrack. They are also getting lots of College radioplay and are charting on the college rock charts. The album is excellent. Check out their home page and their MySpace page to get a sample of what their sound is like.



Exit The Ordinary are: Tim West - Vocals/Guitar, Justin Niemi - Bass, Kyle Bondy - Drums.
Official website:   http://www.exittheordinary.net/

Zak's Tidbits for March 2nd/2010

MGMT fans take note. The boys have been streaming tracks from the upcoming new album on their website. Check it out while they are still up.  http://www.whoismgmt.com/

Muse from SXSW. Go to Muse's website and check out the awesome video of their performance at SXSW. I caught them in Toronto recently and as awesome as their full stadium show is, this small venue event looks mindblowing. http://www.muse.mu/

R.I.P. Alex Chilton. the great and legendary leader of Big Star passed away just three days before their show at the SXSW. The band played a teary eyed tribute performance to their fallen leader and many 'Big Stars' stepped in to deliver on the vocals.

Zak recommends, Pavement - Quarantine the Past

Please support your local independent record store!

Matador Records

I'm sure that all Pavement fans are aware that they are re-uniting this year and will be touring. To go along with this the band has hand-picked 23 tracks for this greatest hits compilation. I don't normally review greatest hits collections in this space but I feel this release is warranted as it is filled to overflowing with many great tracks and for anyone who has not heard Pavement before this is a great place to start. Most of the faves & classics are here however there is also some oddball choices to keep things interesting. They are also not in chronological order, which I have no issue with. The whole is cohesive and it works well. There is a wide enough range of material represented here to give the listener a good spectrum of the range of this great bands work.


Pavement's lo-fi slacker rock was probably the best indie music of the 90's. There are probably going to be many who will complain about some of the omissions in this collection but that is bound to happen when you try to distil their work down and still try to maintain a solid cross section. there are tracks from their first EP right up to their final studio album. Although not a commercially successful band these guys are cited as major influences by many artists that came in the decade after them. A chance to see them this year on the tour should be memorable.

Tracks:

1 Gold Soundz (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)
2 Frontwards (Watery, Domestic EP)
3 Mellow Jazz Docent (Perfect Sound Forever EP)
4 Stereo (Brighten the Corners)
5 In the Mouth a Desert (Slanted & Enchanted)
6 Two States (Slanted & Enchanted)
7 Cut Your Hair (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)
8 Shady Lane / J Vs. S (Brighten the Corners)
9 Here (Slanted & Enchanted)
10 Unfair (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)
11 Grounded (Wowee Zowee)
12 Summer Babe (Winter Version) (Slanted & Enchanted)
13 Range Life (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)
14 Date w/ IKEA (Brighten the Corners)
15 Debris Slide (Perfect Sound Forever EP)
16 Shoot the Singer (1 Sick Verse) (Watery, Domestic EP)
17 Spit on a Stranger (Terror Twilight)
18 Heaven Is a Truck (Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain)
19 Trigger Cut/Wounded-Kite at :17 (Slanted and Enchanted)
20 Embassy Row (Brighten the Corners)
21 Box Elder (Slay Tracks 1933-1969 EP)
22 Unseen Power of the Picket Fence (No Alternative compilation)
23 Fight This Generation (Wowee Zowee)
Official Website:  http://www.myspace.com/pavement

Upcoming Shows:

April

Wed 07 Tokyo, YO JP Studio Coast

Thu 08 Tokyo, YO JP Studio Coast

Sat 10 Osaka, KA JP Zepp

Mon 12 Nagoya, YA JP Club Quattro

Mon 12 Nagoya, YA JP Zepp

Sun 18 Indio, CA Coachella

The Kenzos - Indie Artists of the Day

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The Kenzos

Get Lost Records

Kenzos is a local term for denizens from the fine Philly hood of Kensington. Guitar player/singer Joey James was high school pals with bassist Keith Graber. They went their separate ways after that and after doing some world travelling to different corners of the globe, both ended up in L.A.. Neither of them were aware that the other was there and only 20 mins. apart. After discovering this via family they got in touch and started up their band the Kenzos with drummer Mark Savage. They list among their influences STP, Sabbath, Nirvana, Radiohead, NIN, Beck and a wide array of other Rock & Alternative artists. It is this mix of influences that gives these guys a nice grunge/rock sound with prog & blues influences. Joey's vocals are reminiscent of Jeff Martin from the Tea Party & their overall sound is similar to the Tea Party. I particularly enjoyed the track 'Carstruck' and enjoyed their tracks overall. Their debut self titled CD is available through all the usual online places. Check it out at  http://www.thekenzos.com/


Maniac

The Kenzos

MySpace Music Videos

Zak Recommends - The Besnard Lakes - ...Are The Roaring Night

Please buy your music from your local independent music store! Record Store Day is April 17th! Check out: http://www.recordstoreday.com/

Jagjaguwar Label

'the band could have just as easily named their new album The Besnard Lakes Are the Most Consistent Rock Band On Earth', Greg Argo adequacy.net, ' Right now no one is making music this grand, this big, this moving with so much assurance.' Greg Kot Chicago Tribune. These are a couple of examples of the kind of high praise that The Besnard Lakes are drawing from the critics on their new release. This is the bands third release and their best to date. These Canadian indie artists are among the best around right now. They are being ranked with fellow Canadian artists like Arcade Fire & Broken Social Scene. High praise indeed and worthy. This album is excellent. The structure of it is two five track sections. The first opens with 'Like the Ocean, Like the Innocent; Pts. 1 & 2 & the second part with 'Land of Living Skies; Pts. 1 & 2. Both are epic and build slowly to a full force gale. They have an atmospheric sound and sonically this album sounds very similar or maybe even a continuation of the last album '...Are the Dark Horse'. This album seems to be more cohesive. This is most likely a result of being recorded in one month long effort and mixed in another three week session. The first two records were recorded in a more haphazard schedule. I believe this has resulted in a higher achievement artistically.



The band is named after an isolated lake in the wilderness of Saskatchewan. Jace Lasek the leader and lead vocal of the band started making an annual trip with a friend to the lakes. Here is where the quiet and solitude would give Jace the opportunity to reflect and eventually develop the idealistic inspiration for the themes that run through his music and lyrics. The band is based in Montreal, however Jase is originally from Regina and met Olga there.

Tracks:

1. Like The Ocean, Like The Innocent; Pt. 1: The Ocean
2. Like The Ocean, Like The Innocent; Pt. 2: The Innocent
3. Chicago Train
4. Albatross
5. Glass Printer
6. Land of Living Skies; Pt. 1: The Land
7. Land of Living Skies; Pt. 2: The Living Skies
8. And This is What We Call Progress
9. Light Up The Night
10. The Lonely Moan

The Besnard Lakes are husband & wife Jace Lasek & Olga Goreas, Kevin Lang & Richard White.

Official Website: http://www.thebesnardlakes.com

Upcoming Shows:

25 Mar 2010 20:00 Liverpool Academy 2 Liverpool

26 Mar 2010 20:00 Arnolfini Bristol

27 Mar 2010 20:00 Cockpit Leeds

28 Mar 2010 20:00 Captain’s Rest Glasgow

29 Mar 2010 20:00 Dulcimer Manchester

30 Mar 2010 20:00 Hare and Hounds Birmingham

31 Mar 2010 20:00 Cargo London

1 Apr 2010 20:00 Vera Groningen, Noord-Holland

2 Apr 2010 20:00 Paradiso Amsterdam, Noord-Holland

3 Apr 2010 20:00 Trix Antwerp

4 Apr 2010 20:00 Logo Hamburg

6 Apr 2010 20:00 Cafe Mono Oslo

7 Apr 2010 20:00 Debaser Stockholm

8 Apr 2010 20:00 Debaser Malmo

11 Apr 2010 20:00 Magnet Berlin

12 Apr 2010 20:00 59 to 1 Munich

13 Apr 2010 20:00 Sudhaus Basel

14 Apr 2010 20:00 Casa a Chocs Neuchatel

15 Apr 2010 20:00 Theatre Lino Venture Nice

Sean Atkins - Unsigned Indie Artist of the Day

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Sean Atkins

Unsigned

Hailing from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is Sean Atkins our Unsigned indie artist of the day. He has a beautiful Indie folk sound. Check out his myspace page where he has a good selection of his recordings available as free downloads. It is worth the effort. His vocals are tender with an aching emotional quality on tracks like 'So Little To Lose'. There is also a nice vocal duet with Rachel Reed on 'Gone'.


Official Website: http://www.myspace.com/seanatkins

Dead Surf Country - alt. Country/Folk Welsh Style

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Unsigned

If you love alt country/americana then you should check out Dead Surf Country from Wales. Tender acoustic guitar combined with electric guitar riffs and Meg & Lizzie's vocals has a real American feeling for these Welsh folk. The electric guitar has a nice soaring quality and interplays with the acoustic work perfectly. Check out tunes like 'Then I Met You', 'Lost' & 'My first Trip' on their Myspace page. This is sweet chill acoustics. Gentle love poems with White Cave Receiver pushing into some spacier electronic realms courtesy of Black Mountain Transmitter. 'My First Trip' has got a nice folksy feel and the duo vocals are beautiful. DSC are currently in the studio working on a couple of new tracks. Their EP is available through their website & much more on iTunes & other online channels.


Dead Surf Country is Meg Jenkins & Lizzie Clarke - Vocals, Mark Mathews - Acoustic Guitar & Glen Hawksworth Electric guitar & Banjo. They hail from Swansea in the SW of Wales, a city of Approximately 170,000.
Official Website: http://www.myspace.com/megandmark

Gorillaz - Plastic Beach

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Virgin Records

Well I'm sure that most of you are aware of the fact that the newest Gorillaz release 'Plastic Beach' is out on the street. It is just so damn good I must give it space on the old blog here. It is an impressive project with an impressive list of collaborators which includes Snoop Dogg, Bobby Womack, Mos Def, De La Soul, Lou Reed, Mick Jones & Paul Simonon among others. Damon Albarn & Jamie Hewlett have come up with another smasher. It is brilliant, mind blowing, each collaborator is used to the best against the tableau in which each is placed. This album is sure to produce a handful of hits with 'Rhinestone Eyes', 'Stylo' & 'Superfast Jellyfish' sounding to be surefire as they come. the overall concept has our man Murdoc marooned on an island consisting entirely of garbage. This idea of pollution and waste accumulating to destroy the planet is prevasive throughout the album. This work is so dense and detailed that it will take repeated listens to start to connect the dots and hear all the nuances, layers and details. You will want to do this as it all sounds so fucking good. Another great contender for my best pick of the year.


This is the Gorillaz third album and the first to be self produced by Damon Albarn.

Tracks:

1. "Orchestral Intro" (featuring sinfonia ViVA) Gorillaz 1:09

2. "Welcome to the World of the Plastic Beach" (featuring Snoop Dogg and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble)
Gorillaz, Snoop Dogg 3:35

3. "White Flag" (featuring Bashy, Kano, and The Lebanese National Orchestra for Oriental Arabic Music)
Gorillaz, Bashy, Kano 3:43

4. "Rhinestone Eyes" Gorillaz 3:20

5. "Stylo" (featuring Bobby Womack and Mos Def) Gorillaz, Mos Def 4:30

6. "Superfast Jellyfish" (featuring Gruff Rhys and De La Soul) Gorillaz, De La Soul, Gruff Rhys 2:54

7. "Empire Ants" (featuring Little Dragon) Gorillaz, Yukimi Nagano 4:43

8. "Glitter Freeze" (featuring Mark E. Smith) Gorillaz, Mark E. Smith 4:03

9. "Some Kind of Nature" (featuring Lou Reed) Gorillaz, Lou Reed 2:59

10. "On Melancholy Hill"  Gorillaz 3:53

11. "Broken" Gorillaz 3:17

12. "Sweepstakes" (featuring Mos Def and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble) Gorillaz, Mos Def 5:20

13. "Plastic Beach" (featuring Mick Jones and Paul Simonon) Gorillaz 3:47

14. "To Binge" (featuring Little Dragon) Gorillaz, Yukimi Nagano 3:55

15. "Cloud of Unknowing" (featuring Bobby Womack and sinfonia ViVA) Gorillaz 3:06

16. "Pirate Jet" Gorillaz 2:32

Official Website: http://gorillaz.com

Upcoming Shows:

Live Rehearsals that will play in front of audiences

21st March – Portsmouth Wedgwood

22nd March – Bristol Trinity

23rd March – Cambridge Junction

25th March – Brighton Old Market

26th March – Birmingham Irish Centre

27th March – Lincoln Engine Shed

This will be followed by an appearance @ Coachella on Sunday April 18th