Dreeeeeaam, Dream, Dream, Dream

Hello all!

Time to start countin' sheep, 'cause I'm going into dream pop now. This genre, which I consider to be a pretty obvious subset of the whole indie ordeal, is very ear-pleasing; artists tend to initiate a sound that floats you down the mental lazy river...(hence the name of the genre, heh). It turns out I have been listening to "dream pop" for a long time, but I just recently came across this very fitting alias.

I'm going to start with the album "In Ribbons" by the Pale Saints, a lovely British band that broke onto the scene in the late 1980's/early 1990's (wikiwikiwikipedia!). I sort of feel like I understand better now the roots of the alternative genre that influenced Pablo Honey-era Radiohead. The Pale Saints mastered the alt sound through their proper execution of pedal-enhanced guitar work, crooning male and female vocals, and prominent bass lines, all of which are complimented by satisfying drum beats.

The interchanging between male and female vocals also adds a nice diversity to their song line ups. They also do not hold back from presenting long musical interludes, which only enhance the feel of the album. For example, the second track on the album, "Ordeal", only has about one minutes of vocals that lead the listener into a haven of instrumentality that absolutely paved the way for shoegaze.

Each song on the album has something unique about it, although it all ties together to create the sound associated with this band. If you close your eyes, you can really picture some kind of warped dream world. The Pale Saints found the right formula for taking dreamlike concepts and turning them into really decent, texturally interesting music.

My Picks by the Pale Saints:
Babymaker from "In Ribbons"
Ordeal from "In Ribbons"

Stay tuned next time for Mazzy Star, Beach House and more!

Love,
Danielle

photo cred:
http://www.eso-garden.com/index.php?/weblog/C37/

*MIXTAPE MELTDOWN*

It's that time again! MIXTAPE MELTDOWN! Here's some songs I didn't talk about that you guys may enjoy! ^_^

PSYCHEDELIC POP MELTDOWN
(no specific order)

1.) Animal Collective- My Girls
2.) Of Montreal- Oslo in the Summertime
3.) The Skygreen Leopards- Johnny's Theme
4.) A Band of Bees- These are the Ghosts
5.) Talkdemonic-Andean Twilight
6.) Discovery- Osaka Loop Line
7.) Populous- Canoe canoa
8.) The Octopus Project- Malaria Codes
9.) Pink Floyd- Bike
10.) Black Moth Super Rainbow- Lollipopsichord

Love,
Danielle

Black Moth Super WHAT?!

Psychedelic pop continues today with a special on Black Moth Super Rainbow (BMSR)!

In terms of experimental, psychedelic pop, this Pittsburgh based band has got their sound down to a tee. Their use of synthesizers and sound manipulation allow for a fresh twist on the classic music of the first-generation bands mentioned in the last post. Their album, "Dandelion Gum" (2007), especially stands out as a galloping mix of chill tunes and distorted experimental anthems. My two picks from this album are "Rollerdisco" and "Melt Me", two examples of the contrast between their softer jams and mind-blowing psychedelic tracks.

"Rollerdisco" really sets that exact mood; you can easily imagine people rolling around on old school skates clad in brightly colored outfits. Hell, it makes you WANT to roll around in a brightly colored outfit. I like it when songs portray an image in their music, and this particular track most certainly does that.

"Melt Me" breaks into upbeat psychedelia immediately; there is no need for build-up in this song, because BMSR keeps the tension and excitement going through the song through use of manipulated synthesizers and a vocoder.

Venturing forward in time, 2009's "Eating Us" shows that BMSR has crafted and honed their peculiar sound. The drums are more distinct, and the synthesizers show us that this band is capable of creating some great songs. My pick from this one, "Twin of Myself" is a soft, pleasant psychedelic ballad, quite different from the earlier albums.

I have rarely heard something quite as interesting and different in the psychedelic genre. I love this band, and after the initial psychedelic punch in the face, I think you all will love it too.

Stay tuned for next time!

Rollerdisco by Black Moth Super Rainbow

Melt Me by Black Moth Super Rainbow

Twin of Myself by Black Moth Super Rainbow

Love,
Danielle

Bubblegum Blastoff: Psychedellic Pop

You don't need any mind-altering drugs to enjoy the sounds of psychedelic pop. The songs are (usually, there are always exceptions) catchy and irresistibly groovy, giving you a little slice of freedom and happiness in the proverbial sunshine.

There is a difference, no matter how small, between psychedelic rock and psychedelic pop. What I am currently romancing with is psychedelic pop.

So let's start with a little dissection. You've got your 1960's psychedelic pop, and you've got your neo-psychedelic. While I am more curious about the neo stuff recently, I felt it appropriate to include at least two good songs from two good bands/artists of the 1960's psychedelic era just to give some basis for where this neo sound is evolving from. Or copying. Your choice.

My first 1960's pick is "Scarlett and Gold" by the 13th Floor Elevators. In this jam, you can really hear that influential drum beat that frequents the neo era. Add in some off-kilter reverberated vocals and guitar, and you've got the perfect equation for psychedelic success.

My second 1960's pick is Donovan's "Sunshine Superman". Sure, this guy has been called an Irish Bob Dylan rip off many times, even by me, and he most certainly is, on later albums. But what is often overlooked is his catchy 60's psych, which is absolutely enjoyable, and shows that he had a relatively distinct sound before he jumped on the Dylan folk wagon.

Tune in next time for neo psychedelic!

Scarlett and Gold by the 13th Floor Elevators
Sunshine Superman by Donovan

Love,
Danielle

*MIXTAPE MELTDOWN*

So I've decided to try out this nifty little thang called a "Mixtape Meltdown". Basically, every time I shift genres, I will provide a list of notable songs I came across. That way, you guys can check out some of the stuff I didn't share with you.


NU GAZE MELTDOWN
(no specific order)

1.) Papercuts-The Wolf
2.) Deerhunter-Agoraphobia
3.) Atlas Sound with Noah Lennox- Walkabout
4.) Silversun Pickups-Lazy Eye
5.) Relay-Driver
6.) She, Sir- The Clandestine
7.) Sigur Ros- Svefn-g-englar
8.) Mew-Comforting Sounds
9.) Gregor Samsa-Untitled #2 (recommendation courtesy of Kyle W)
10.) Deaf Scene- Where Only We Exist (recommendation of Kelly S)


Love,
Danielle
(;,;)

Still Checkin Out My Shoes

Ah, blog post two of my lovely little affair with "Nu Gaze", but I like calling it Post-Radiohead better.

Justification: even though Radiohead is still dishing out fantastic albums, I feel like their sound has influenced a whole new generation of alternative/indie rock.

Today, I present Caribou, the one man band consisting of Daniel Victor Snaith (smooches, Wikipedia >_>). As I continue to explore bands related to Post Radi...I mean Nu Gaze, I keep running into a wall of psychedelic pop. I feel like Caribou creates a beautiful little noise rock sundae, with a psychedelic cherry on top and a electronic chocolate topping (work with me here, people). I downloaded the album "Andorra" which has an overall wonderful sound; everything flows nicely together and each song maintains a relatively ambient attitude. I especially enjoy his incorporation of flutes into songs, as well as more experimental noises.

The Bottom Line:
If you're looking for some great background tunes to start relaxin' like a Saxon to, Caribou is a good place to go.

My Pick for Caribou
"Melody Day"

Love,
Danielle

P.S. Tune in next time for PSYCHEDELIC POP

Look Down and What Do You See?

Shoegazing is a term that is completely new to me; I had seen the genre title bouncing around, but never fully understood what it meant. One day, someone sat me down and said, "Danielle, shoegazing is when musicians are gazing at their shoes constantly because they are executing so many effects on their guitar pedals!" The sentence may not have been structured quite that formally, but it was something along those lines.

Nu Gaze, or "the new wave of shoegaze" (thanks, Wikipedia! You'll always be my friend^_^), is my most current musical infatuation.

As soon as I heard distortion followed by guitar licks that sounds like they were made underwater, I was sold. Add in a steady, simple drum beat and higher pitched indiscernable male vocals, and I could no longer resist. I can't get enough of this noise, but as with all of my genre affairs, some albums or artists stand out more than others.

So without further adieu, I present to you my first recommendation for this genre: Deerhunter.

Start with the album "Microcastle" (2008). Some of you may have heard it, some of you may have not. Regardless of who you are, if you have ever enjoyed Radiohead, consider giving Deerhunter a thorough listen. In fact, that's how I feel about most of this "shoegazing" genre: Post-Radiohead.

The bottom line is, this album is pure ambient guitar licks, experimental sounds and a variety of tempos (all cradling Bradford Cox's crooning vocals). The other Deerhunter album I happened to download was the earlier "Cryptograms", which is far more experimental and less structured than Deerhunter's later endeavors, but still worth a listen to see the progression of the band.

Here's my Deerhunter pick:
"Never Stops" from Microcastle


Love,
Danielle

OK Go

Music, in my humble opinion, is one of the greatest forms of social communication; people relate to one another through their musical preferences, and a song or artist can greatly affect a person's day to day life.

Now that all of the philosophical jazz is out of the way, what I would like to accomplish with this blog is sharing all of my various genre affairs with you: my potentially loyal reader. Not only will I be exploring new artists of these genres, but I will also revisit the albums or songs that made said genre what it is today.

I feel like there is so much new music constantly chucked into our lives that we tend to forget about a lot of music. There are so many notable albums, songs and artists that quickly get put under the radar or are simply forgot about.

So, welcome to my genre affairs, where you will see things you may have forgotten about and hopefully learn about things you never knew about.