22 Jun

Eight years into its existence, Northside Festival is determinedly future-minded. Dividing itself into thirds, the NYC festival has two- and three-day stretches dedicated to "innovation" and "content". The other third -- four days worth of music between the East River and Bushwick, pulls in choice marquee names and established artists...

18 Mar
On their newest LP, Electric Balloon, New York's Ava Luna offer a solid rock and R&B framework infused with the pulse of experimental music. The result is something they call "nervous soul" -- experimental rock that is as texturally interesting as it is emotionally invigorating. As soon as Electric Balloon begins, its simple grouping of rock instruments offers a cool, open, and vintage-inspired sound. With heavy power chords, musical interlude-tracing guitar licks, funky bass lines that make you want to dance, and a percussion section featuring everything from cymbals and tambourines to maracas and woodblocks, Ava Luna tap into many of the classic and modern rock instrumental mainstays that would be right at home on a Black Keys album and which (at least for me) cannot fail to please. Add to this awesome, soulful, R&B-reminiscent vocals by Carlos Hernandez and light, edgy female vocals that dart in and out of the album's gritty backing instrumentation, and you've already got a soundscape that is engaging all on its own.
27 Jun
Brooklyn indie poppers MS MR have just started a series of mixtapes called Track Addict. The first installment of this is Ava Luna's "Wrenning Day", which you can find embedded alone separately. Holy crep!

 

MS MR - Track Addict Vol. 1 Tracklisting

1. Breeze Blocks - Alt-J 2. Seconds - Ghost Loft 3. Move to the Ocean (Baauer Remix) - Brick + Mortar 4. Amber - Electronic Guest 5. Forever - Haim 6. My Better Self - Tennis 7. Lazuli - Beach House 8. Sleep Paralysis - Gabriel Bruce 9. Wrenning Day - Ava Luna 10. Midland - Arthur Beatrice 11. pound your town to hell - Cloudy Busey 12. Suburbs (Cover) - Mr Little Jeans 13. Don’t Move - Phantogram 14. Gone - Vacationer

 

DOWNLOAD TRACK ADDICT VOLUME 1

 

10 Oct

cmj music marathon picks for tuesday, october 19th das racist This hip-hop duo took the internet by force and drilled their single, “Combination Pizza Hut And Taco Bell,” into thousands (perhaps millions) of heads repeatedly, and deservedly so. Not for a long time has hip-hop sounded...