THE BRANDT BRAUER FRICK ENSEMBLE feat. EMIKA – Pretend

M83 – Midnight City

CLAMS CASINO – I’m God

Unofficial, non-profit video.
Footage from “Lost in New-York” (Jean Rollin, 1989)

Favourite Five*… Modern Classics of Swedish Pop to Hear at Glastonbury This Summer

Indie pop goes the swedish librarian.

If like me you go weak at the knees for swedish girls singing catchy left of centre pop songs then you too will have rejoiced at the recently announced Glastonbury line-up. For this summer there will be (WARNING: lazy Swedish pun approaching) a smorgasbord of swedish pop sirens (BAM!) performing. A relatively small smorgasboard perhaps, one with only enough room for three different catchy melody infused dishes but for the interests of tacky Scandinavian wordplay in this post, a smorgasbord none the less. In honour of this here’s our favourite five* swedish pop songs to sing along with at the world’s greatest festival.

* It’s five plus one fave songs because we love each of these three artists equally so gave them two songs each.

1. THOSE DANCING DAYS – Hitten

Sweetness songified. But not sickly at all.

2. THOSE DANCING DAYS – Those Dancing Days

Can’t think what to call your jaunty new tune? Then just repeat your band name!

3. ROBYN – Dancing On My Own

I’ll dance with you Robyn.

4. ROBYN – Call Your Girlfriend

I haven’t got a girlfriend Robyn. Do you want to be my girlfriend?

5. LYYKE LI – Little Bit

I am more than a little bit in love with you Lykke Li.

(5 +1 =) 6. LYKKE LI – Tonight

Tonight, I’ve been given a restraining order for stalking swedish pop stars. Karin Andersson, watch out.

SOMAFM Radio

A switchboard of excellent underground, alternative radio — and to no surprise, from San Francisco’s South of Market. We like radio stations Secret Agent and Poptron and the comprehensible catalog of recently played tracks.

http://somafm.com/

BIBIO – Excuses

Laser cut Bokeh masks fitting to Bibio’s electronic sound cutouts and upcoming album Mind Bokeh scheduled for release April 4th on Warp Records.

The video adds that extra color stimulating dream sequence, providing as chromatherapy to fight your winter insomnia. (Blame looking to far into this on lack of sleep.)

Director: Michael Robinson/Moviate

ROUGE ROUGE

It’s Gotan Project without the tango and Télépopmusik should the main singer’s voice have hit puberty.

French electronic duo Rouge Rouge’s album Ce soir, après dîner is not of latest trend (dating “back to” 2002) but is still completely relevant when you’re looking for a retro abreast music score to Lamorisse’s Ballon Rouge.

http://www.myspace.com/listentorougerouge

Cultpops November II

Burning Through The Nite by Outer Limits Recordings

Outer LImits Recordings is one third of Test Icicles. This song just needs to be listened to. There’s no point trying to explain it. At it’s core is brilliant pop. But just click the link.

Jamie, My Intentions Are Bass by Chk Chk Chk

Whoever you are Jamie, you’ll have one hell of a night if you spend it with these dirty disco brooklynites.

All Around And Away We Go by Twin Sister

Yet another brooklyn band but don’t let that put you off. This eerily gorgeous disco tune is hypnotically amazing in its eery gorgeousness.

Any Human Heart by William Boyd

The dramatisation starring Jim Broadbent and Matthew Mcfadden as Logan Gonzalo Mountstuart, adapted by Boyd himself comes to Channel 4 this week. If you’ve never read the book, make sure you do. Whether or not you see the television series first. Though preferably read the book before you watch the drama if you can. Simply, the greatest of modern novels about the importance of human relationships to one’s life.

Peeping Tom by Michael Powell

Limited re-release for the sixties voyeuristic thriller by the director of A Matter Of Life And Death and The Red Shoes that shocked audiences and critics alike when it was originally shown in cinemas.

Favourite Five… Indie Surf tracks

It’s The Drums. Oh no, hang on. It’s The Vaccines.

With the current wave (ahem) of 60’s surf inspired indie bands coming out of the US and now the UK seemingly never ending, it appears to be the  hipster guitar sound du jour. So here’s five of the best/most important/biggest tunes of this fledgling genre. A genre that will surely wipe out within the next year…I’ll stop with the puns now.

1. THE DRUMS – Let’s Go Surfing

The song that started it all.

2. SURFER BLOOD – Floating Vibes

The band that followed.

3. BEST COAST – Boyfriend

Girls just do it better it seems. (And check out the remix by similarly summer inspired Ghostwaves.)

4. JENNY AND JOHNNY – Big Wave

Rilo Keilly side-project snake this particular new wave.

5. THE VACCINES – Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra)

Don’t believe the hype.

Special Mention – THE SUNDAE KUPS

Stumbled across this band playing out the back of a van in the tiny kids area at Latitude festival this summer. Hardly anyone watching but it was without doubt the funniest gig I have ever seen. In a good way. Very funny guys.  Check out the myspace here.

The Magic Pop Hotel

In concert November 14th at L’International Bar in Paris.

Season in and season out, we’ve now moved on from checked shirts back around to Doc Martens (or lookalikes anyway), florals, denim, and curtain haircuts. Yet Fashion’s clichés forget the timbre of 90s culture, which may not be able to be defined as looks but more as places.

These places don’t have to be Nirvana or Marcy’s Playground, and if radio and portis heads should meet, why not in a Magic Pop Hotel?

Teetering between pop and trip-hop, French singer, Carolyn Evan, and composer Jean-Baptiste Ayoub play with all kinds of grains against electronic froth in their recently released, self-titled album which reads as “melodies inviting you to fly away”.

We guarantee this hotel is surprisingly pop-trippy, like having gotten high in the halls of 90s nostalgia. The entire album is an experience of wanderlust. One moment you’ve caught a familiar metric recalling the Sneaker Pimps, only to be cradled by some Air, and wait, perhaps some Sade ?

Try to count the directions of your enthusiasm within the span of the Magic Pop Hotel’s 10 tracks.

Magic Pop Hotel released on Lafolie Records.
http://www.magicpophotel.com