Deli cover band of our Summer 2010 issue, Bear Hands just debuted the music video for "High Society", which the band’s guitarist, Ted Feldman, had a "hand" in directing, together with Andrei Bowden-Schwartz. The video is like a moving mosaic – a myriad of tiny videos of the band playing form the bigger, moving picture. To realize this the band stood in front of the cameras performing "High Society" 78 times. The directors brought the overwhelming footage to New Orleans to be edited with the help of Bob Weisz, who directed Big Freedia’s video for "Y’all Get Back Now". This video comes on the heels of the vinyl release of Bear Hands’ debut album, "Burning Bush Supper Club". The Brooklyn four-piece started a new national tour yesterday in Washington, DC and will rock the stage of Webster Hall on October 30 with opening acts, We Were Promised Jetpacks and Royal Bangs. – Abigail P. Devora

Combining epic sound scores with equally epic visuals in their live sets, it’s no wonder DC’s Drop Electric topped the charts when it came to fan votes in our recent band of the month poll. In case you aren’t familiar with this troop, we’ve got the entire lineup together for a little Q&A, including Ramtin Arablouei (Drums), David Garber (Keys), Neel Singh (Guitar), Sho Fujiwara (Guitar), Kristina Reznikov (Guitar), and Patrick Ryan Morris (Visuals.) With an album under their belt, and a new EP this Fall, Drop Electric fills us in on a possible upcoming film project, growing up on Kris Kross cassettes, and the upsides of the DC music scene. Check out the interview here…

And get yourself acquainted with their sounds courtesy this free download of their album Finding Color In the Ashes! It’ll surely get you amped for their upcoming show at the Rock & Roll Hotel on August 5th with Constant Alarm and Oh So Peligroso. Want more? Check out their video for "Robot Funeral" that just debuted last week. Holler! (Photo by James Lawler Duggan)

Seattle legends Blue Scholars dropped by KEXP’s studios yesterday to record a few tracks from their new album Cinemetropolis.  The duo, consisting of George Quibuyen and Saba Mohajerjasbi, have been a keystone of the local hip hop scene for over a decade, combining proficient, fresh beats with a deft lyrical style that is socioeconomically/politically hyper-conscious, and always infectious.   

We introduced these new promising Brooklynites to our readers here back in May, they just premiered this video for "Wet Cement", fashioned after a scene from Francoise Truffaut’s 1960’s film, "Shoot The Piano Player". Pursesnatchers, which features members of Au Revoire Simone and Dirty on Purpose, will be celebrating the release of their debut CD "A Pattern Language" at Union Hall on July 22.

Borrowing in equal measure from the bubble gum ballads of the 60s and the decadent atmospheres through which – during that same decade – The Velvet Underground were implicitly fustigating that music and a few other things, The Echo-Friendly’s new single "Same Mistakes" is pretty much a contradiction in terms. The band’s sound, also because of the addition of a female voice, has obviously evolved tremendously since the debut EP "Still Not Sorry", released at the end of 2010, which was faithful to the dark ballad format, but carried much stronger rootsy influences. The single was released a few weeks ago on Cantora Records. The foursome is well into completing its first EP, expected to come out this fall.

Sam Mickens has, since his teen years, been a shadowy figure operating across the landscape of international pop music with an experimental edge, in groups The Dead Science (Constellation Recording artists), Xiu Xiu (which he’s recently rejoined and for whom he’s presently composing new material) and Degenerate Art Ensemble, and acting as a sideman/guest musician with artists ranging from Daniel Johnston to Carla Bozulich. Additionally, for the past few years he’s been extremely active composing music for large-scale modern dance works by a number of choreographers, as well as creating his own epic performance works, both as co-chair of the now-defunct Villainaires Academy and most recently under his own name. He presently lives in Brooklyn, NY, where he leads his large ensemble Sam Mickens Ecstatic Showband & Revue. You can see him live at Silent Barn on July 30.

Aeroplane Pageant make music that’s not easy to pigeonhole into genres – which is a good thing, even though this makes the reviewer’s life a little harder. There is definitely a hefty amount of electronic and effected instruments here, in an overall "prog" aural enviroment, but not of the cheesy kind. The suffix "prog" in this case can be described as a playful, "ear-friendly" (or "pop" if you wish) experimentation. That’s probably why a lot of music writers seem to hear in Aeroplane Pageant’s music something reminiscent of The Beatles… Which is really a misleading comparison in my opinion, because these guys are way more out there in terms of song structure and overall complexity of the arrangements. This is pop with a non-pop structure, so basically a rather unique musical paradox, and the song in this newly released video "Help Me Shoot This Apple Off My Head" is a perfect example of this.
Aeroplane Pageant will be celebrating the release of their new album "Float Above The Yard" at Mercury Lounge on Auguts 12.

And now, a word from Lemolo:

We are SO thrilled to announce that we have booked our first tour for this fall! We can’t express enough how honored we feel to be supporting our good friends, The Head and The Heart, on their first headlining tour. We are also excited to share the stage with the wonderful Thao with The Get Down Stay Down. Stay tuned for more dates to come, but this is what we can share with you so far!

10.13.11 – TBA
10.14.11 – TBA
10.15.11 – TBA
10.18.11 – WOW Music Hall / Eugene, OR / $15 / All Ages
10.19.11 – Crystal Ballroom / Portland, OR / $20 / All Ages
10.20.11 – The Commodore Ballroom / Vancouver BC, CA / $21.50 / 19+
10.22.11 – TBA

We also are excited to tell you that we have begun the recording process on our very first full-length album. We are on day two in the studio and can’t wait to share our tunes with you! We’ll be hard at work during the next few months, so be sure to check back in often for updates and further announcements!
We sure hope you all are enjoying your summer as much as we are, and we are looking forward to seeing you at Doe Bay Fest in August and Bumbershoot in September!

Cheers,
Kendra & Meagan

Walking a musical line between quirky, lo-fi and psychedelic, Phil and the Osophers have been entertaining the NYC indie scene fans for quite some time. The brainchild of Philip Radiotes and currently a trio, the band has just released a 7" single of two new songs – "Figures Of Speech" and "Ink On The Page" via Brooklyn label Factual Fabrications. These two "sonic appetizers" are going to be followed by a true "feast" consisting in a double album due to drop later this year. The band is also premiering this video of "Ink on The Page", a song that reveals a more mature sound, leaning towards a sparse psychedelic-pop with elegant Morriconian influences. We like what we hear.

Being asked to headline 2 nights in a row at The Mercury Lounge is definitely an excellent sign for an emerging band, since the staff who books the most prestigious of NYC small venues is known to be extremely picky. Brooklyn natives A Million Years – a band we’ve been following, featuring and also booking for quite some time – landed this double gig after selling out the venue in June. The quartet plays a punchy, at once catchy and incendiary brand of indie rock with epic tinges, reminiscent of a a darker and more aggressive version of Spoon. A Million Years brought their high energy live shows around the U.S. in several occasions, also opening for 30 Seconds to Mars, Phoenix, and the Drums, before being personally asked to join Jesse Malin on his U.K. tour last December. If good indie rock is your thing, you may want to be at Mercury Lounge on July 21 or 22.

Seattle Shoegazers C’est la Mort have announced that they’ve been selected to contribute to a Smiths tribute album that is set to appear this October.  C’est la Mort have an ethereal, warbling sound that sails over a driving undercurrent of tight bass and drums.  C’est la Mort are reminiscent of My Bloody Valentine, with less muddy vocals, but more closely related to the likes of Comsat Angels, Slowdive and the Chameleons.  Their last album, Empty Words Fill Lonely Spaces, which sold out in hard copy form, is available for download at their bandcamp site for the skimpy price of $8.