Since his 2008 record 'The Island Moved in the Storm,' singer-songwriter Matt Bauer has split his time between Brooklyn, Austin, Arkansas and Kentucky, working without a solid home base. Much of his new EP, 'No Shape Can Hold Me Now,' centers on themes of travel and finding home. His track 'Tonight We Get to Sing Our Songs' is about finding himself in a new city, awash in the spirit of adventure.
Autumn Owls are getting ready to release their debut full-length, 'Between Buildings, Toward The Sea,' on Oct. 23, but the trio from Dublin, Ireland, have already been around the block. They recorded their album in Chicago with Brian Deck (Modest Mouse, Iron and Wine), and as they told Diffuser.fm, they finished writing their second single, 'Patterns,' on a cruddy acoustic guitar they bought while touring in the middle of Texas. The track itself has a world-weary sound, part of what make these relative newbies sound like vets. Grab 'Patterns' here for free.
Seattle trio the Pharmacy describe their new album 'Stoned & Alone' as the band reaching a kind of maturity. Produced with Brandon Eggleston (the Mountain Goats, tUnE-yArDs), the album reaches a deft emotional sensitivity while cranking out up-tempo, sunny singles like the one we've got on offer today, 'Baby Be.' Grab it here for free.
Bands have long found it helpful to start gathering a fanbase in the U.K. before trying to break into the States, since the scene is smaller, and it's easier to get noticed. We Need Surgery took this principal in an altogether different direction, initially forming in 2007 in Seoul, South Korea, where they did, indeed, start generating a lot of attention in local media. Consisting of two Canadians, two Americans and one South Korean, the band eventually moved to Vancouver, where they continued writing and eventually produced the 12-song self-titled debut that arrived this week.
It's been entirely too long since Phoenix put out a new record. Thankfully, Vancouver duo Fine Times brings us exactly what you might want in a new indie electronic power-pop banger with their new single 'Strays.' Grab it for free here.
Dragonette are blowing up. Even before their collaboration with Martin Solveig on the monster hit "Hello," their songs were charting in Europe, and the band was touring with New Order and Duran Duran. Originally from Canada, they've lived in London for the past seven years, an experience that inspired the song 'Live In This City' from their new record, 'Bodyparts.' Today, we get a bangin' Database remix.
Valente Bertelli is from Rome and was raised in the Italian part of Switzerland. The son of a jazz singer and a theater director, Valente was genetically destined for music. He's since moved to LA and has just released his debut EP, 'Alexandria.' Today we get a free download of the strikingly sincere single 'Home.'
Seattle trio Police Teeth bring in spades what we love most about Seattle rock: noise. From the first few distorted strokes of their new self-titled record, the band evoke Sonic Youth, Archers of Loaf and maybe a little Les Savy Fav. Today they bring us a gem of a single, 'Emmanuelle in Renton.'
Dry the River is a band after my own heart. They exhibit three of my all-time favorite attributes in anything artistic: They're loud as hell, originally from Europe and grounded in emotion. Norwegian Peter Liddle's brainchild began as solo project but grew organically into a full-band endeavor as comrades from his teenage years in the England punk scene fell into the empty stage plots around him, helping his sound grow into the booming, atmospheric thing it is now.
Formed in 2002, 10 Years rode in at the tail end of the '90s alt-rock wave that brought us Tool, A Perfect Circle and Deftones. They carried the torch into the aughts, with their 2008 full-length 'Division' reaching No. 12 on the Billboard charts. Today they bring us the B-side acoustic version of their single 'Soma,' from their latest, this year's 'Minus the Machine.'
