NYC uber-poppy collective The Orion Experience just released the video for this Motown sound inspired song "NYC Girl".
 

The energetic and punky stylings of New York/New Jersey’s The Static Jacks are amplified
to even more pressing levels on their newest record and sophomore release, “If You’re Young”
due out August 30. To celebrate the upcoming date, The Static Jacks will be joining the Escape
to New York Festival August 5 in Southhampton. The first preview of the new album,
the second track, “Girl Parts,” is available for public consumption and characterizes “If
You’re Young’s” slamming drums, frantic pace, aggressive and howling vocals, and overall,
consistently boisterous attitude. Other album highlights include a revision of “My Parents Lied,”
drawn from their EP, “Laces,” a gentler tune, “Sonata (Maybe We Can Work It Out?),” and
freewheeling “Blood Pressure.” “If You’re Young” demonstrates The Static Jacks’ growth as
a band and the establishment of a more identifiable and relatable sound. – Meijin Bruttomesso

The illustrious Blue Scholars have announced a new, extensive tour.  It’s their longest headlining extravaganza to date with a whopping 29 dates across the West, Midwest and Northeast.  

09/14 – Vancouver, BC – 560 Nightclub
09/17 – Seattle, WA – Showbox Market
09/20 – Eugene, OR – Wow Hall
09/21 – Portland, OR – Wonder Ballroom
09/22 – Olympia, WA – The Royal Lounge
09/23 – Bellingham, WA – Wild Buffalo
09/24 – Belllingham, WA – Wild Buffalo
10/12 – San Francisco, CA – Slim’s
10/13 – Santa Cruz, CA – Atrium @ Catalyst
10/15 – Los Angeles, CA – Key Club
10/16 – San Diego, CA – Casbah
10/18 – Scottsdale, AZ – Chasers
10/19 – Albuquerque, NM – Launchpad
10/20 – Boulder, CO – Fox Theatre
10/21 – Denver, CO – Cervantes
10/22 – Colorado Springs, CO – The Black Sheep
10/23 – Ft. Collins, CO – Aggie Theatre
10/24 – Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby Court (early) & Urban Lounge (late)
10/26 – Boise, ID – Reef
10/27 – Missoula, MT – Top Hat
10/28 – Spokane, WA – A Club
11/03 – Minneapolis, MN – 7th Street Entry
11/04 – Madison, WI – Frequency
11/05 – Chicago, IL – Schuba’s
11/06 – Ann Arbor, MI – Blind Pig
11/07 – Toronto, ON – WrongBar
11/08 – Burlington, VT – Higher Ground
11/10 – Boston, MA – Paradise
11/11 – New York, NY – Bowery Ballroom

Blue Scholars – Lumiere by geeksmakebeats

August 2nd will mark the release of Tripper, the fifth studio album from the Fruit Bats.  Since 2001’s Echolocation, Eric D. Johnson and his ever-changing gang of cronies have continued to make excellent folk rock albums; Tripper should be no different.  This will be the band’s fourth release on Sub Pop.  The guys have some local shows coming up, including an in-store at the Queen Anne Easy Street shop on the album’s relase day, before heading out for a 15 date tour with Sub Pop labelmates Vetiver in September.  Check out the 80’s backlighting and Johnson’s Miami Vice look in the video for "You’re Too Weird" below.  

Fruit Bats – "You’re Too Weird" from Townhall on Vimeo.

Apparently, a much different record is created in North Beijing than say, when you roam around the Catskills for awhile. When Amen Dunes’ first LP DIA surfaced two years back, it got a lot of attention… or as much attention as the blogsphere will allow any artist. Much was said of Damon McMahon’s freak folk trippiness and 180• departure from his former work as part of Inouk. By comparison, this new, made-in-china record makes his debut sound flatter and less ambitious than the dense, reverb-drenched soundscapes he’s putting together now.
For his sophomore effort, Through Donkey Jaw, (Sacred Bones Records) the results are more dreamy, insulated and paired down than I expected. But then… I’ve never been to Beijing. Gone are his once trademark monotone drawl, replaced with chant-like ups and downs from the crazy buildup in "Not a Slave" to the softly lilting ‘Swim Up Behind Me." Give McMahon floor toms, stratocaster and massive echo, and he’ll burrow his way into your sub-conscious like Syd Barrett or Beck circa One Foot in the Grave.
Well, now Amen Dunes is back in Brooklyn, so show our ex-pat some love. Grab the new record on iTunes Aug. 11, and see him live at Shea Stadium for psych folk night with 1129 and MV & EE. – Mike Levine

Up and coming Brooklyn trio Widowspeak has been catching some serious lo-fi waves since last fall if you haven’t noticed. Forming less than a year ago, the band hooked up with Captured Tracks and landed some pretty sweet bills (oh yeah, and a bunch of people fell in love with frontwoman Molly Hamilton’s vocals). We recently exchanged a few questions with the band about Widowspeak’s very promising past, present, and future, and they were more than happy to fill us in on all the great stuff they got going on. Read Popgun Booking’s interview with the band here.

Brooklyn’s Shake the Baron , who played The Deli’s “Best of 2010 Festival,” touch on the ups and downs of song writing, combining light hearted melodies, peppy rhythms, and tender and smooth vocal harmonies with lyrics and inflection that express great yearning and melancholy on their self-titled album. Musically cheerful but lyrically lovesick “Treehouse” opens Shake The Baron’s debut album with effervescence that infiltrates the remainder of the record. “Zodiac Name” is simultaneously bubbly in beat and tranquil in multi-part vocals, and this smooth peacefulness pervades the glowing track, “Sinking Sailor.” Concluding tune, “Telekinetic At Home,” echoes with harp-like guitars and gentle vocals, fashioning a dreamy lullaby. Shake the Baron’s new album satisfies the appreciation for nuance, sentiment, and the serene. – Read Meijin Bruttomesso’s interview with Shake the Baron here.

In the summertime even indie rockers are ok with some 80s "cheesiness", as long as it’s done with class. Fresh Millions offer a mix of feel-good funk eg. Zapp, Midnight Star, Earth Wind and Fire with with Dancey electronics kinda like Justice and Octopus Project. And they do like their vocoder… See them live at Lamberts on August 19 or in September at the Austin City Limits Music Fest.

Translations was one of the most positive notes at our May 2011 B.E.A.F. Fest – their inventive, textural psych rock also earned them a Deli "CD of the Month" in September 2010. The band just released this cover of Nico’s "I’ll keep it with mine" (here‘s the original), taking the opportunity to announce that they will be playing at the South Street Seaport Music Festival on August 11, and releasing our favorite track "Tarantella" on a limited edition 7" on Seaport Records.

Mp3: Translations – "I’ll Keep It With Me"

If the booking has a theme, it’s "big names from lots of genres."

Diverse heavyweights include Swedish pop star Robyn, Idaho indie rock icons Built to Spill and pioneering rap crew Freestyle Fellowship, from Los Angeles — touring with its original lineup for the first time in 10 years.

Also big: American country/rock singer-songwriters Shelby Lynne and Ryan Adams, and Canadian electronic duo Crystal Castles.

The fest’s lesser-known Seattle acts are also strong, representing the top tier of several local momentums: twee pop (Seapony, Witch Gardens), hip-hop and soul (Don’t Talk to the Cops, Metal Chocolates, Allen Stone) and chillwave, the trance-y genre currently taking over America’s dorm rooms (USF, Big Spider’s Back).

City Arts Fest is more than music — the programming involving movies, readings, dancing and visual art. But it’s mostly music. And most of it happens in clubs and established venues, like Chop Suey, Neumos, the Crocodile and the Showbox.

One curveball is the Pacific Science Center Laser Dome, an underutilized space for music — and a cool venue to see Oregon electronic/indie rock band Helio Sequence.

Check the full lineup and schedule at cityartsfest.com/schedule.

-associated press-

Ambassadors is one of those bands that are just impressive in some kind of good old way: band members who can play their instrument, strong and staright-forward onstage presence, interesting sound and songwriting – such a band 10 years ago would have easily been picked up by a major label. To us, their avant-alt-rock seems strongly influenced by a particular sound that emerged in the mid 80s – a musical era perceived as prehistoric (and therefore cool) by many twenty-somthings. It’s the era of Peter Gabriel’s pop rock experiments from the "SO" and "US" period, and of a particular drum sound that is huge but controlled – think of the drums from Robert Plant’s records with The Power Station. In a NYC rock scene that’s been mostly flirting with lo-fi, surf and shoegazer influences (without mentioning the hordes of rather generic alt rockers), Ambassadors’ sound is definitely a welcome addition. See them live at Brooklyn Bowl on August 2.