Labrador Records wants to get you prepped for the Summers days at the (insert favorite summer hangout here) with this essential mix and it’s all yours for free! The odd thing is when I tried to download it the ZIP file contained a note that says the following:

“Our server broke down, so please download the summer sampler from PirateBay instead. http://thepiratebay.org/tor/4257645/LabradorSummerSampler

Have a good summer!
/Labrador”

PirateBay.org? Sounds shady and Jack Sparrowy. But if Labrador is endorsing the site, it’s gotta be legit. Oh yeah, I also hear that you have to download something like Transmission for Mac or Azureus for Windows in order to get the album. I don’t even know what all that means. Damn kids today with their music…

1 [Ingenting] - Här Kommer Solen
2 The Sound of Arrows - Danger!
3 Sambassadeur - Final Say
4 Suburban Kids With Biblical Names - Funeral Face
5 Pelle Carlberg - I Love You, You Imbecile
6 Club 8 - You And Me
7 Johan Hedberg - Grammisgalan
8 The Radio Dept. - Freddie and the Trojan Horse
9 Sambassadeur - Subtle Changes
10 Tribeca - Her Breast Were Still Small
11 Chasing Dorotea - Dark Angel
12 The Mary Onettes - Explosions
13 The Legends - Darling
14 Leslies - Take A Look
15 Irene - By your side
16 Pelle Carlberg - Go to Hell, Miss Rydell
17 Club 8 - Jesus, Walk with Me (The Sound of Arrows remix)
18 Suburban Kids With Biblical Names - Trumpets and Violins
19 Acid House Kings - Start Anew
20 Irene - Little Lovin
21 The Radio Dept. - Pet Grief
22 Club 8 - Whatever you Want
23 Acid House Kings - This Heart Is A Stone
24 Loveninjas - Little Black Friends
25 [Ingenting] - Släpp In Solen
26 Caroline Soul - Been Turning (Into Something Bad)
27 Acid House Kings - Sunday Morning
28 Johan Hedberg - Var Dig Själv
29 The Legends - Make It All Right
30 The Sound of Arrows - Danger! (Ice cream shout)

 

 Acid House Kings - Summer's On It's Way: Play Now

So I’m a little late getting to this one. But like a good chef, I like to let my music marinade, slow cook in a crock pot for a few days and pickle until it’s ready to eat.

Sadly, after tasting this recent single from the Radio Dept., it seems like it was was a little undercooked. Bland and raw at the beginning but the flavor starts to come out after chewing on it for 2 minutes.

2/5

 

 The Radio Dept. - Freddie and the Trojan Horse: Play Now

There seems to be a resurgence of musical genre’s these days. From 80’s electro-pop groups like Cut Copy to more contemporary throwbacks with She & Him. While I’ve throughly enjoyed aforementioned bands, there is one genre in particular that I’ve always hope would make a comeback: Britpop. I felt that this genre was only starting to scratch the surface before it’s untimely death in the late 90’s. But like a Phoenix rising from Arizona (thanks Frank C.), The Ruling Class is the first band that I feel is actually continuing what The Stone Roses, The Charlatans and Ride had started.

This Swedish/English combo started by singer/songwriter Tomas Kubowicz and bassist Anton Lindberg in 2006. After little success in finding like-minded bandmates in Sweden, they relocated to London in an attempt to perhaps gain some influence. It may have been a little too late, seeing as it was almost 10 years after Britpop’s demise, which Tomas admits to in a recent interview:

“The Stone Roses was kind of an introduction – I never had any high thoughts of their debut album when I first listened to it, but when I picked up the album again a couple years later and had a listen, it totally exploded. It’s a masterpiece. I’ve never left them since.”

Eventually they managed to find a drummer and subsequently recorded their debut EP Tour de Force, produced buy Mark Wallis who’s credits include the Smiths, the La’s, the Go-Betweens.

If you’re looking get that Britpop Monkey off your back, this album is sure to be your um…banana.

P.S. - Check the MP3 for ‘Umbrella Folds’ I’ve posted below. I think the chorus sounds exactly like ‘Waterfall’ by The Stone Roses, it makes me wonder if Tomas wrote that as a kind of cheeky homage.

4/5

Tour de Force CDEP is available now on Shelflife Records.

 

 The Ruling Class - Flowers: Play Now

 

 The Ruling Class - Umbrella Folds: Play Now

After searching within the depths of the music blogosphere, it looks like I’m a bit late writing about this indiepop band. I suppose my laziness is partially to blame as I’ve been listening to these guys for the past month or so. For the benefit of the peeps who don’t know, This Is Ivy League is a New York duo of Ryland Blackinton and Alex Suarez hell bent on ushering in a summer of blowing bubbles, croquet in the park and patting small children on the head.

If you enjoy bands like Camera Obscura or Pas/Cal, chances are you’ll dig this album. There seems to be a song for any occasion - the strum and jangle of ‘London Bridges’ is perfect for a tandem bike ride, while the lovely acoustic (and my favorite) ‘Viola’ is great for sipping a cup of tea indoors on a rainy Sunday.

TIIL seems to be one of those bands thats on the cusp of making it big, but they just need one of their songs to be featured on a cell phone or car commercial and they’ve got it made in the summer shade.

4/5

 

 This Is Ivy League - The Richest Kids: Play Now

Video for ‘London Bridges’

Ahhh indie music genres, there’s no shortage of them these days. From post-punk to twee, every band out there seems to fit into their own specific music style. While researching the band in today’s Tweeview, I found perhaps the most fitting genre applied to a band. Welcome to the world of ‘laptop-pop’. Songs consisting of synth beats, electronic orchestras accompanied with a simple guitar pluck or strum. Perhaps the most popular band I can think of that uses this music production method would be The Radio Dept.

This is also perfect description for the kind of pop tunes Kuryakin creates and they’re not ashamed to admit it:

“Kuryakin is simply trying to make beautiful music. If they could they would have a symphonic orchestra backing them up on every song, but for now they have to be satisfied with all the sounds you can make with a computer.”

Despite my digging around the internets for a proper bio on these guys, the best I could find was a very short blurb about them on their website. Petter and Johan got together in University in 2002 and started recording music a year later. Their first song ‘Onie’ appeared on the fantastic Are You Scared To Get Happy? compilation released in 2005, with a subsequent demo simply titled ‘Birds’ consisting of 3 tracks. These days their music is put together by mailing samples and ideas to each other and then play together a few times a month, à la Postal Service.

Kuryakin will be releasing a combined EP and 7″titled ‘Still Here’ on Shelflife Records sometime this Spring. If you like to sway to sweet, simple songs that are perfect for to listen to on a rainy Sunday morning, pick up this album.

Thanks darksoy.

 

 Kuryakin - Take My Hand: Play Now

This band fascinates me. I don’t own any of their albums and have listened to only a handful of their songs on youtube or last.fm but from what I have heard, I really like. I suppose the reason why I’m so curious is because they’re an indiepop band from Indonesia. Who would have figured, but fantastic nonetheless. The songs they create are probably the epitome of twee - sickly sweet lyrics with a simple catchy music backing. Their debut album ‘My Diary’ seems like it would be a true testament to this, but really I’m just going based on the one song I’ve heard and what they’ve written on their website:

“My Diary” contains 13 songs written from a girl’s point of view and her diary entries. The album starts with a Once Upon A Time and is followed by a song telling of a first encounter with her Secret Admirer. Then after much hesitation in Twist Me Around, she decides to go steady with the boy in Me & My Boyfriend. In Telephone they break up, understanding that When the Moonlight Shines, they just weren’t meant for each other and thus, Rain Will Fall, Life Keeps On Turning.

Doesn’t get much more twee than that my friends. Here’s a couple of videos. The first, ‘I Would Never Friend’ features Karoline Komstedt from Club 8 (yowza!) and the second, ‘Life Keeps On Turning’ features our very own Ricky on the night of his high school prom.

Mocca’s Website: http://mymocca.com/