Tango Alpha Tango is the brainchild of Nathan Trueb, formerly of the long-time Portland band, The Carolines. Tango Alpha Tango released their debut record in Feb. 2008 and has recently been added into rotation on 94.7 NRK in Portland, a great feat, due to the unbelievable amount of great music to choose from in this burgeoning music scene.
These guys submitted this info through the new submissions page and I felt that it was definitely worth passing along to the rest of you. What do you think? I think that they have a unique sound… vocals are clean, tracks are mixed well, and the music is right up ol’ Shepizzle’s alley.
Menomena has been around for a few years and have a couple of solid albums under their belt. I have been a fan for a long time and I know that I say this a lot, but if you haven’t given these guys a chance you really need to. They are pure gold!
Menomena has a style all their own. You can see it in their album art, hear it in their music, see it on their website and in their music videos. They have a great mix of sound that is aided by some pretty cool looping software. Most of their music is kind of out there on the fringes but has just enough pop in it to be catchy and memorable. I love to listen to Menomena while I’m doing something that occupies the majority of my attention… there’s just something about the music that stimulates my brain.
Favorite songs include the entire Friend and Foe album and “E. Is Stable” from I AM the FUN BLAME MONSTER!
I have to apologize for the lag in writing reviews, I have had a few life-changing events occur over the past few weeks:
1. I changed positions at my day job and my personal time has suffered quite a bit.2. I got a Wii and then got Guitar Hero III… enough said.
I have been listening to some great stuff and I’m a little bit backed up on submissions (keep them coming!). If you haven’t listened to The Glow, Pt. 2 by The Microphones from start to finish then you just haven’t lived! Here’s a bit to whet your whistle but I really do recommend listening to the album as a whole as opposed to single tracks.
These guys are not newest and freshest up-and-coming Indie music, but this album is one of those landmark albums that any aficionado of the Indie sound will appreciate.
The Trapper Schoepp (pronounced “Shep”) Band on Shepizzle.com… it just has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? I suppose it’s only fitting that I share this indie folk rockin’ band from Wisconsin’s music with you.
These guys have nailed an indie folk sound that is genuine and fun. The vocals are good and the melodies are fun and mostly upbeat. Others have compared the Trapper Schoepp Band’s sound to that of Wilco, but I don’t know if I would go that far…
I wasn’t even going to mention that these kids are still in high school, lest your prejudice stand in the way of you enjoying the music, but now that you have had a listen, it makes them that much more impressive, don’t you think?
These guys sent me their album a while back and I took too long to get the review up, so they will be the first band to be published via our submissions page. Check it!
Hi, my name is Matt. I play guitar, keyboard and sing in the Austin, TX indie rock band Built By Snow.
I love your site and I just wanted to tell you about our new animated music video. In the video we are space ship pilots in an 8-bit nintendo game! The princess gets kidnapped at the beginning and we’ve got to go rescue her… It’s mega-rad. I have personally done all of the special effects work, and it was just completed last week.
Here’s “Underneath” from Noise:
Also, here’s the link for the download of our debut album “Noise”:
Sea Wolf (a.k.a. Alex Church) is currently in heavy rotation on my playlist. I know that I have found a good band when my wife asks, “Who was that?” after each song on the album. I think that she thinks it’s Sea Wolf each time, but she’s just not sure.
Sea Wolf was my pick for best new artist of 2007. These guys are making some of the best new Indie music out there, a fusion of rock, folk, and melancholy blues that I just can’t get enough of.
Sea Wolf’s sound is versatile enough to be fresh and unique song after song, while Church’s vocals weave the common thread throughout each album. The band released their first full-length album in 2007 called Leaves In The River and I highly recommend it.
Favorite songs include “You’re A Wolf”, “Black Leaf Falls”, “Black Dirt”, and a song for your Valentine’s Day playlist - “The Garden That You Planted”. If you like Sea Wolf, try: The National, The Great Northern, Okkervil River, and Beirut.
Here’s the music video for “You’re A Wolf” from Get To The River Before It Runs Too Low.
Portugal. The Man is absolutely worthy of mention on this or any other Indie music blog.
These guys are from Alaska and I was curious to know whether or not any other bands I know of are from Alaska. A quick query on Google for list of bands from Alaska took me to www.alaskasbestbands.com and sadly, Portugal. The Man did not make the list, (Jack Johnson’s Quartet did make the list and no, it’s not that Jack Johnson.)
These guys have been able to reinvent their sound over and over again. Waiter: You Vultures! (2006) was a conglomerate of electronic and rock elements with a progressive twist. The bands frequent use of drum machines and other synthesized sounds were a trademark of that album. Church Mouth, Portugal’s latest release is much more traditional rock, with an almost Black Crowes-esque southern rock feel to it. The band cites Dirty Sweet and The Butchers and the Builders as influences.
I haven’t seen these guys live but I hear that their shows are pretty mind-blowing. Now how about some music?
So if you have been paying attention to my Last.fm profile, you would have seen this post coming. Every once in a while, I get on a Sigur Rós kick and I just let myself get lost in their music for a few days.
Hailing from the nordic northlands of Iceland, Sigur Ros is no stranger to international success. The band has released several solid albums including ( ), Takk…, and most recently, Hvarf-Heim. Their music contains elments of ambient sound, shoegaze, and rock. Many of the songs are very epic both in feel and in length. The vocals are sung in a made up language loosely based on Icelandic that leaves the lyrics to the listener’s imagination, though the music does enough to convey the intended emotion. Also worthy of note is that guitarist Jón Þór Birgisson is one of only a select few who often plays his guitar with a cello bow in true Jimmy Page fashion!
If you like Sigur Ros, try: Mogwai, Radiohead, The Album Leaf, Broken Social Scene, Efterklang
Sigur Ros’ music videos are truly works of art. I chose this one because of how well the video complements the feel of the music. This is “Glosoli” from Takk…
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