http://www.myspace.com/thexx

XX 可愛的抑鬱冷凝，都會午夜專屬的浪漫低迷
XX NME注目新秀！宛如Tricky遇見The Kills…
XX 傳媒打圈圈！Guardian ★★★★ / MusicOMH ★★★★☆（四顆半星）


對十九歲的青少年來說，崇拜Aaliyah、Rihanna、Beyonce等美國流行節奏藍調天后，或在自家地下室搞個龐克樂隊，其實都不足為奇，但當這兩個行為交集時，倒是頓時讓人有些不知所措！


Romy Madley Croft、Oliver Sim、Jamie Smith、Baria Qureshi四個來自倫敦藍領階級家庭的十九歲青年，從托兒所和小學陸續相遇，結識了「大半輩子」後，十五歲開始拾起樂器、半生不熟地耍帥玩搖滾，聲稱從CocoRosie、The Cure、Pixies以至Ginuwine、Aaliyah和Mariah Carey都是左右其音樂風格的啟蒙導師，然而，當你初聞The XX一鳴驚人的翻唱曲〈Teardrops〉（八O年代節奏藍調雙人組Womack & Womack名曲）和首發單曲〈Crystalised〉、一頭栽進那宛如Tricky遇上The Kills抑鬱的世界，才發現這群老是以黑色酷勁造型亮相的小夥子，竟和想像中是如此截然不同的模樣！


「倫敦是個永遠不會令人厭倦的城市，即使在它讓人沮喪時，仍令人感到驚奇……」樂隊鍵盤手Baria Qureshi如此形容著他們所生活的城市。當此等對倫敦的著迷，透過The XX的音符獲得抒發，以十一首精簡迷人的旋律勾勒著倫敦充滿緊繃和衝突的城市景觀，Romy Madley Croft和Oliver Sim媲美The Kills男女雙主唱的完美和諧，迷濛慵懶的吉他和著Bassline沉穩深邃的律動，The XX將節奏藍調剛柔並濟的節拍，以搖滾形式重新輸入後，舒緩自信的超齡音樂厚度，〈VCR〉、〈Night Time〉、〈Heart Skipped A Beat〉…一首首彷彿迷走的城市、望著陌生又熟悉風景時，苦澀和甜蜜交織的矛盾情緒，凝聚出直追Tricky和Burial那般穿梭都會深夜的低迷冷凝氛圍！

http://www.myspace.com/hyakkei  
http://www.hyakkei-jp.com/ 


2003年在日本大阪成立的三人樂團百景Hyakkei，罕見的二男一女組合，以以基礎三件樂器組建自由流動的旋律線，有別於時下後搖團流於哀傷自溺與過度強調的大爆炸，百景以明亮清爽的吉他、旋律漂亮的貝斯與快速俐落的鼓點帶動情緒，轉折間盡顯樂團的高度自信。

試聽：Ichinichi

延續Tenniscoats在Room40以田野錄音為主的嘗試，他們再度與廠牌老闆Lawrence English合作，到東京的公園、河邊演奏錄音。七首精緻、充滿空間感的小品捕捉到這個日本最具代表性迷幻民謠二人組在原生環境的自然音樂表現。

http://www.myspace.com/mouseonthekeys   


最初成立於2006年的Mouse on the Keys，成員包括川崎昭(drum, keyboards)和清田敦(piano, keyboards)，後加上新留大介(piano, keyboards)和池田啟介(projection)，2007年於日本後搖勁旅Toe自創廠牌Machu Picchu INDUSTRIAS旗下發行首張迷你專輯《sezession》，今年六月池田啟介離開樂隊，七月Mouse on the Keys正式發行首張專輯《An Anxious Object》，以鋼琴與鼓為主幹，融合當代爵士、古典、後搖與電音，呈現山雨欲來的暗黑氣息。


Tracklisting:
1   Completed Nihilism (1:16)
2   Spectres De Mouse (3:21)
3   Seiren (4:26)
4   Dirty Realism (2:23)
5   Forgotten Children (4:18)
6   Unflex (3:24)
7   Double Bind (3:39)
8   Soil (5:27)
9   Ouroboros (5:42)

Spectres de mouse

1984年，你可能還沒出生，或在牙牙學語，很難想像過去25年，Yo La Tengo就這麼直挺挺地佇立在獨立音樂的浩瀚海洋上。許多爆紅新團發個兩三張唱片卻後繼無力，Yo La Tengo第12張大碟《Popular Songs》已不是寶刀未老足以形容，它證明了有些人天生的使命就是一直玩搖滾樂。


其中當然包括Yo La Tengo黃金三人組：吉他手Ira與鼓手Georgia賢伉儷，及每次來台T恤尺寸又大了一號的貝斯手James。


由1993年經典專輯《Painful》以來合作無間的老戰友Roger Moutenot監製，錄製於家鄉紐澤西，無論這是你的第一張或第十張Yo La Tengo，《Popular Songs》都會融化你的心。由氣勢磅礡的〈Here To Fall〉開場，弦樂與鍵盤交織出一片迷幻蒼穹，Yo La Tengo像一名經驗老道的領航員，帶你遊歷氣象萬千的搖滾星球。Georgia獨唱的微風小品〈Avalon Or Someone Very Similar〉，短潔有力的龐克金曲〈Nothing To Hide〉，很有放克喜感的〈Periodically Double Or Triple〉與男女對唱歌〈If It’s True〉，各式曲風信手拈來輕鬆寫意，三個人的默契與化學效應還是那麼好。埋伏在尾聲的三首長篇更是集大成之作，醞釀與沈潛，嘶吼的吉他顫音，傳遞的全是濃烈的Yo La Tengo經典音感。閉上眼，你幾乎可以看見Ira就站在音箱前，用扭曲的姿勢甩動手上的Fender吉他。催淚極品〈More Stars Than There Are In Heaven〉是這麼唱的：「We’ll walk hand in hand, as the world expands.」每個人的青春歲月，感謝Yo La Tengo一路陪伴。

MUSE，這個榮獲5座MTV音樂獎、4座Q音樂獎、7座NME音樂獎、2座全英音樂獎的英倫搖滾天團，由主唱兼吉他/鋼琴鍵盤手Matthew Bellamy、貝斯手Chris Wolstenhome及鼓手Dominic Howard共同組成，於1999年推出首張大碟“Showbiz”，而後他們便陸續以2001年的“Origin of Symmetry”、2003年的“Absolution”、2006年的“Black Holes And Revelations”，一次又一次地讓所有搖滾樂迷懾服在他們的音樂魅力之下。他們是帶著溫暖笑顏的魔鬼，也是流著冷冽淚水的天使，Matthew血肉中古典與搖滾的衝突美感、Chris歇斯底里的貝斯音牆、Dominic異趣多變的鼓聲編排，讓MUSE有著無法取代的樂團樣貌。跨越時間的屏障，突破空間的限制，在他們的音樂作品當中，有著強烈的視覺化感受，時而穿梭浩瀚銀河系，時而跌入無盡黑洞，彷彿每個音符都直接鑽入中樞神經，啟動情緒的起伏節拍。


相信每位樂迷都渴望想知道，這一次MUSE又將會以全新專輯，帶領我們前往一個怎樣的音樂境界？相較於挑戰性十足的“Absolution”和思潮滿溢的“Black Holes and Revelations”，新作“The Resistance”可說是樂團出道以來最具野心、也最反動的作品，也是他們首次全權擔任專輯的製作人角色。無論是擅長用非常淺顯有趣的文字，來闡述達爾文演化論的英國演化生物學大師道金斯(Richard Dawkins)，或是著名的波蘭音樂家鋼琴詩人蕭邦（Frederick Chopin），還是左派知識份子代表人物、英國著名小說家喬治奧威爾（George Orwell），全都是啟發新專輯創作靈感的重要推手。在混亂毀壞之中為愛與信念奮戰，首支工業搖滾氣息十足的單曲「Uprising」啟動聖戰，「Resistance」在節奏中誓言奪回自由權利，沾染新浪潮氣息的「Undisclosed Desires」有著新穎的律動，「United States Of Eurasia」激昂壯闊宛如末日搖滾歌劇！「Guiding Light」在摩登中尋找復古，「Unnatural Selection」嘶吼真理，「Mk Ultra」急速墬落音網，探討思想控制或是化學審問等秘密活動等議題。美麗易碎的柔情樂章「I Belong To You」，這首搖滾詠嘆調，接續著之後長達12分鐘的「Exogenesis Symphony」三部曲，這個在義大利米蘭，和將近40位的音樂家共同錄製管絃樂的三部曲創作，確立了搖滾型態就此邁向全新里程碑！

夏天就該狂熱自己的模樣
蘇打綠帶給大家「夏 / 狂熱」 


溫暖春天輕拂後，緊接著夏天，蘇打綠將帶給大家熱情的搖滾。
英國，全球第三大音樂市場。終年的濃霧孕育出無數世界知名搖滾樂團：The Beatles, Pink Floyd, The Who, Deep Purple, Radiohead, Oasis, Blur, Coldplay…蘇打綠前往倫敦，錄製一張單純、直接、用音符炙熱生命的計畫中第二張專輯「夏 /狂熱」。 

〈夏 / 狂熱〉裡的時間，是跳動的，不是一天的流動，而是生命中，過去到現在、現在到未來的流逝。「狂熱」一如字面上的意義，就是直接、執著。「狂熱」就是這張專輯的終極精神，十一首歌詞都在表達某一種狂熱，並皆以直接的字彙呈現。一如夏天的熱情，狂熱的直接，專輯定調為搖滾風格，所有的發想皆以搖滾的概念為基礎。

冰島搖滾神話「席格若斯樂團Sigur Ros」主唱Jonsi最新力作，與親密摯友艾力克Alex Somers，首張琴瑟合鳴創作大碟
Sigur Ros長期合作女子樂隊Amiina與Kopavogsdaetur唱詩班，情義相挺助陣
Contactmusic、Strangeglue一致★★★★等級讚揚推薦
輕啟夢幻國度的神秘大門，尋求心與靈的平靜與昇華，展開一段沒有終點的水中冥想旅程


層次鮮明的出色編曲與主唱「雍希Jon Thor (Jonsi) Birgisson」（以下簡稱Jonsi）勾魂攝魄的空靈嗓音，無疑是「席格若斯樂團Sigur Ros」最受人讚譽的兩大特色。然而在忙碌緊湊的專輯錄製工作與巡演行程之外，精力旺盛的Jonsi，亦不忘撥冗發展個人的創作事業。大約從2006年開始，Jonsi與生活上相互扶持的親密摯友「艾力克Alex Somers」合力創作，兩人除了以「睡吧！米男孩Riceboy Sleeps」為名出版限量刊物，亦先後舉辦一系列的展覽活動。專精視覺藝術的Alex，過去曾為Sigur Ros的專輯與官方商品擔任視覺設計，而他與Jonsi更試著將創作觸角延伸至音樂領域，兩人的心血結晶〈Happiness〉，首先受到知名另類合輯《Dark Was The Night》的青睞收錄，而廣大的樂迷們，也得以透過〈Happiness〉與Riceboy Sleeps展開音樂上的第一次接觸。幾個月後，Jonsi與Alex兩人以Riceboy Sleeps為名的首張同名專輯，也已正式宣告錄製完成。


本張專輯中有如迷霧般層層交疊的特殊音場，很容易讓人想起Sigur Ros的作品，然而Jonsi卻不想在此複製Sigur Ros的輝煌成就。他與Alex選擇降低人聲比例，以原音樂器、豐富的取樣及絃樂，輕啟水中夢幻國度的神秘大門、尋找心靈的平衡與昇華，帶領聽眾展開一段將近68分鐘、卻好似沒有終點的冥想旅程。事實上，本張專輯的多數創作，皆在兩人共同準備餐點時與日常生活的鎖碎事物中產生。而兩人在冰島的住處，也理所當然成為主要的錄音地點，舉凡客廳裡的鋼琴、金屬鍵琴、小風琴、鐘琴、吉他到電顫琴，皆是兩人創作的工具，甚至生活中的噪音也一併收錄！

Fresh from his worldwide success with indie supergroup 'Mongrel', Jon McClure brings us his second Reverend & The Makers studio album 'A French Kiss In The Chaos' which has been produced by Jagz Kooner (Primal Scream/Kasabian) and mixed by Dave Sardy (The Ting Tings/Oasis/LCD Soundsystem). `Silence Is Talking' is the first single from the album and rides a blissed out euphoric groove. 'A French Kiss In The Chaos' was recorded at Tony Visconti's legendary Dean Street studios where Bowie, T-Rex & U2 have all recorded classic material. The album is the follow up to the 175,000 selling 2007 Top 5 album `The State of Things' (which spawned several hit singles including `Heavyweight Champion of the World' and `He Said He Loved Me'). The album has unquestionable universal appeal and features 10 tracks covering topics such as global warming, Prozac and consumerism, but with a sense of optimism and positivity. Musically the new album embraces 60's psychedelia alongside a thoroughly modern and vibrant sound. Wall of Sound. 2009.

http://www.myspace.com/codesintheclouds



來自英國肯特郡，現場演出已有穩固口碑五人純器樂後搖團Codes In The Clouds，終於推出首張錄音專輯Paper Canyon，彷彿是Mogwai與Boards of Canada互鬥的結晶，從一開始便讓人如飛蛾撲燭般一頭栽入，且不停渴望聽到更多，從氛圍蘊釀低點藉由超技精準打擊與迴繞吉他riff漩渦緩慢鋪陳堆砌，達至讓人腸胃糾結的磅礡情緒高潮，Codes In The Clouds以他們成熟的技巧與對旋律的敏感處理得非常到位，這不就是後搖最迷人的地方嗎?

http://www.myspace.com/brokenrecordsedinburgh


"We're trying to do something different. People forget that music doesn't have to be just bass, guitar and drums. It can be just as loud and exciting with glockenspiel and trumpet" - Broken Records


Tipped by pretty much every record industry insider upon their appearance in 2008, Broken Records certainly have the raw materials to become one of the most celebrated British bands over the next 18 months. A record bubbling over with passion and heart-on-the-sleeve emotion, Until the Earth Begins to Part doesn’t always quite do the songs it features full justice. The production seems to struggle to cope with the bombast, and the band could learn occasionally that less can be more. 


That said, songs such as ‘Slow Parade’ and ‘If the News Makes You Sad Don’t Watch It’ are undeniable signs that they could play huge venues in the future. (the epoch times)

http://www.patrickwatson.net/ 


07年9月在被喻為「加拿大水星音樂獎」的Polaris音樂獎上，名不見經傳的Patrick Watson，竟大爆冷門擠下Arcade Fire、Feist、The Besnard Lakes和Junior Boys等叱吒各大傳媒年終榜的加拿大當代重量級團隊，以《Close To Paradise》一舉摘下年度最佳專輯，意外讓我們發現一個觸動靈魂的聲音。這個以Patrick Watson為創作核心的蒙特婁組合，由Patrick Watson（主唱/鍵盤手）、Simon Angell（吉他）、Mishka Stein（Bass）和Robbie Kuster（鼓）共組，2003年推出首張專輯《Just Another Ordinary Day》，結合古典鋼琴、情境電氣和流行搖滾元素的唯美旋律，為Patrick Watson的音符帶來濃郁的電影感，而自小學習爵士和古典鋼琴的Patrick Watson指間寂寥的琴音，以及綜合Jeff Buckley、Nick Drake、Maximilian Hecker和Antony and the Johnsons等人的魔力嗓音，更為樂隊帶來了強烈的辨識度，在加拿大獨立樂界迅速蔓延的聲勢，讓其接連受邀與John Cale、Amon Tobin、The Dears、Feist和James Brown等共同巡迴演出，並在The Cinematic Orchestra的新專輯中獻聲。

電影【鴻孕當頭】Juno又愛又恨的紐約搖滾天團
轉投獨立名廠Matador，重拾八○末葉硬蕊精神
直竄腦幹的青春噪音氣流！ musicOMH ★★★★★



結束了與舊東家Geffen十餘年合約，紐約搖滾天團Sonic Youth毅然重返獨立體系，加入傳奇名廠Matador，成為Yo La Tengo的師兄弟。第十六張專輯《The Eternal》以吉他強力掃射、長度只有兩分鐘的龐克短曲〈Sacred Trickster〉開場，女主唱Kim Gordon高聲喊著：「別忘了將音箱轉到最大聲！」


這是一則聲明，她的意思其實是：「幹！我們終於自由了。」


1990年的《Goo》以降，Sonic Youth於主流系統出版了九張大碟；都是水準佳作，可是為了提高市場接受度，部份風格的妥協與退讓卻也在所難免。做為萬眾矚目，回歸獨立陣營的首張作品，Sonic Youth宛如一匹重獲新生的脫韁野馬，無拘無束地快意奔馳。


長期擔任巡迴成員的前Pavement貝斯手Mark Ibold，此回正式入團，使Sonic Youth擴展為五人編制。這五名氣味相投、各有顯赫資歷的樂手，有時分進、有時合擊，譜出生涯三十年的精華寫照 — 迂迴反覆的低鳴樂句經由鼓擊變拍，揚升至電鋸吉他與狂悍貝斯掌管的高空地帶；唱歌的人幾聲漫不經心的吼叫，引領樂器迷醉交織，導入火力猛烈的高潮段。


《The Eternal》重拾了Sonic Youth八○末葉經典三部曲的硬蕊精神，那種龍捲風式的麻辣破音，那股直竄腦幹的青春氣流。沒人能逆轉歲月，只是聽著五十歲的Thurston Moore仍像少年仔使勁晃動著吉他搖桿，酷帥不滅地放送噪音聲波。時間，在Sonic Youth的宇宙裡，好像從來不曾流動。

http://www.myspace.com/wearephoenix



＊ 把玩復古搖滾和電子響音的法籍四人傑出團隊，睽違三年全新大碟首度攻進美國告示牌排行榜

＊ 由法國 House 雙拍檔 Cassius 成員 Philippe Zdar (Depeche Mode、Dimitri From Paris、MC Solaar) 協助製作，    邀請瑞典清新搖滾團 The Perishers 成員 Thomas Hedlund 協助所有鼓擊演出
 

把玩著新世代搖滾響音、跳動愉悅的電氣聲頻，追尋同鄉 Daft Punk、Air 等團隊的腳步登上國際舞台，來自法國的 Phoenix，將再翻轉復古與新潮的結合，勾引搖擺活力律動，刺激全身上下敏銳神經。


睽違三年之久，轉換新東家至 V2 唱片公司懷抱，拱上【Phoenix Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix】大碟，首度攻進美國市場登記告示牌第 76 名位置，由法國 House 雙拍檔 Cassius 成員 Philippe Zdar (Depeche Mode、Dimitri From Paris、MC Solaar) 協助製作，邀請曾造訪台灣的瑞典清新搖滾團 The Perishers 成員Thomas Hedlund 協助所有鼓擊演出部分。打從開場 "Lisztomania" 簡約的編曲拉啟序幕，爽朗吉他來回撥奏，輔上 Thomas 隨興無壓嗓音，強烈提升那份感染力極佳之觸感；Electro-Pop 的曲折線條漸漸譜入 "1901" 之中，就在豐富不吵雜黏膩的歡愉氣氛中度過；來回貫穿深具旋律性節拍的 "Fences"，以兩把吉他一抹快意搖滾的活力；切分為上下部曲的 "Love Like A Sunset"，Part I 純演奏的情緒醞釀，到了僅 1 分 57 秒之 Part II 的短暫演唱作結尾，配置出相當迷離的另類優作；端上好聽到不像話的 "Rome" 和 "Armistice"，沉穩內斂且飽實的編曲，搭配優美且漸層堆疊的音場，提供一個舒服暢意的空間，同時體驗 Phoenix 異國的迷人超魅力。

英式搖滾團果醬靈魂人物
Nirvana傳奇製作人Steve Albini親手打造滿分大碟
Pulp搖滾勁歌‧KTV雋永抒情曲‧派對跳舞旋律…


前英式搖滾巨團Pulp主唱Jarvis Cocker，2008年在島民的久盼下來台獻藝。不像許多單飛主唱總會義務性的表演幾首早期成名曲，Jarvis Cocker極有性格的只唱自己的個人作，擺明想與輝煌的過往切割。


既然如此，他乾脆在離開Pulp後的第二張大碟做了一個更大膽的嘗試 — 與過去二十年地球上最多產也最具份量的美籍製作人Steve Albini合作。


曾被Steve Albini成功改造的藝人不計其數，Nirvana是赫赫有名的例子。只是他剛猛硬派的美式獨立風格，能否與Jarvis Cocker詼諧性感的英式幽默安然共存？這兩名傳奇人物的夢幻組合又會撞出什麼眩目火花？《Further Complications》以毫無冷場的十一首歌回覆了這些疑問：無論宏觀的概念鋪陳或微觀的細節處理，它較Jarvis Cocker首張專輯都要來得更有態度且大搖大擺。


雖然開頭兩曲的吉他聲線儼然是Steve Albini的招牌手痕，一路聽下去，你會發現站在舞台中央的仍是眾人熟悉的Jarvis Cocker，他穿著窄身西裝、戴著黑框眼鏡，自信滿滿的唱著搖滾勁歌。諸如吼叫聲外全為樂器演奏的〈Pilchard〉、由逗人薩克斯風開場的〈Homewrecker〉或整張專輯最得Pulp精髓的醒耳金曲〈Caucasian Blues〉，都是替派對量身打造的跳舞歌；而幾首抒情曲也同樣雋永，尤其〈I Never Said I Was Deep〉與〈Slush〉的動聽程度簡直是KTV必點的等級。


當Jarvis Cocker在〈Leftovers〉唱著：「我想當你的戀人，我想當你的泰迪熊。」又有誰能夠拒絕這種迷死人的請求？

由Maria Taylor 和 Orenda Fink兩名冰雪聰明女子所組成的Azure Ray，音樂正如其名，蔚藍射線，溫柔地照拂著每一顆在黑夜中徬徨的心靈。Azure Ray成熟美麗的旋律撰寫方式、簡約中卻又流露豐富層次感的編曲，獨特而夢幻。同名專輯《Azure Ray》開場曲" Sleep" 以錚鏦樂聲鋪陳出一片看似耀眼、卻又充滿迷濛與神秘的夜空，Maria Taylor 的嗓音，彷如一道銀白月光班切入其中，帶來安詳、靜謐與甜暖的氛圍；這也是《穿著Prada的惡魔》中，女主角坐在車上，面對徬徨的心境時，最具撫慰效果的一首歌曲。"Displaced" 簡單的吉他和弦，幽緩的民謠旋律，彷彿與老友徹夜促膝、娓娓訴說著許多心事；"Rise"的編曲方式和"Sleep"可說有異曲同工之妙，但Maria如耳語般的聲音，使私密情緒更上層樓。"Safe and Sound" 憂傷的情緒，乾淨平穩的空心吉他，流暢甜美如童謠的旋律，也遮掩不住其中的迷惘與未達成的期待；"How Will You Survive" 則是在甜到要滴出蜜汁的和聲中，展現出多重情緒的轉折，一切美麗與憂傷，盡在這簡短的幾分鐘裡。Azure Ray 質樸簡潔的dream pop，融合許多迷幻民謠先輩如Mazzy Star、Mojave 3的氤氳氛圍，但其中蘊含的，卻不僅是漠然與憂傷，而是以獨特的色彩，編築出一道又一道充滿誘惑的紗帳，用以隱藏那太過美麗耀眼的色彩與光芒；在我們揭開紗帳的同時，也開啟了心靈的另一顆眼睛，看見世界的溫暖。(文/楊久穎)

http://www.myspace.com/thewhitestboyalive

 

2009 sophomore release from the Berlin-based Indie/Electro band featuring Erland Oye, formerly with Kings Of Convenience. The Whitest Boy Alive started as an Electronic Dance music project in 2003. It has slowly developed into a band without any programmed elements. Of course, one might notice, that most of the songs on Rules have one thing in common: move your body! Less Indie Pop and more Disco, Rules is both a step forward for the band AND a look back at their influences. 


THE WHITEST BOY ALIVE 留白的規條／袁智聰

http://www.myspace.com/monojp


Track listing:

Ashes In The Snow

Burial At Sea

Silent Flight, Sleeping Dawn

Pure As Snow (Trails of the Winter Storm)

Follow The Map

The Battle to Heaven

Everlasting Light

日本後搖滾代表MONO 2009年最新專輯,也是成軍十週年的紀念大作！！

Just in time for their 10-year anniversary, MONO return with their fifth studio album, the absolutely massive Hymn To The Immortal Wind. The music is naturally majestic, with MONO's trademark wall of noise crashing beautifully against the largest chamber orchestra the band has ever enlisted. The instrumentation is vast, incorporating strings, flutes, organ, piano, glockenspiel and tympani into their standard face-melting set-up. While Hymn continues to mine the cinematic drama inherent in all of MONO's music, the dynamic shifts now come more from dark-to-light instead of quiet-to-loud. The maturity to balance these elements so masterfully has become MONO's strongest virtue - save for perhaps their uncanny ability to sound every bit like a plane crashing into a Beethoven concert.

http://www.myspace.com/thepainsofbeingpureatheart


自2007年成立至今，The Pains of Being Pure At Heart可謂被受談論，承繼My Bloody Valentine、House of LovePale Saints、Rocketship等略帶甜味的噪音流行曲傳統，加上青春無敵的青澀情感與細緻編曲，早前單曲“Everything With You”已經大受歡迎，也難怪這張專輯一出勢不可擋。


Since forming in early 2007, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart have become one of the most talked-about pop bands in years. Their distinctive style tidily distills all the great noise-pop precedents-early My Bloody Valentine, House of Love, Pale Saints, Rocketship-with incredible exuberance and energy in every song. Following the band's ace Everything With You single and whirlwind Swedish tour, The Pains of Being Pure At Heart is an instant classic, packed with brilliantly executed pop gems that blend the rush of youthful enthusiasm with crafty arrangements, well-honed tunes and buckets of guitar racket. One instantly identifiable thing about a Pains record is the essential "rightness" of their tunes. They have captured the attention of pop fans around the world and raised anticipation levels for this album to a near-fever pitch.



The Pains of Being Pure at Heart - Everything With You

With the Internet able to build up or tear down artists almost as soon as they start practicing, the advance word and intense scrutiny doesn't always do a band any favors. By the time they've got a full-length album ready to go, the trend-spotters are already several Hot New Bands past them.


Vampire Weekend started generating buzz in 2006 — not long after they formed — but their self-titled debut album didn't arrive until early 2008. Vampire Weekend also has just a handful of songs that haven't been floating around the 'Net, which may disappoint the kind of people who like to post "First!" on message boards. This doesn't make those songs any less charming, however — in fact, the band has spent the last year and a half making them even more charming, perfecting the culture collision of indie-, chamber-, and Afro-pop they call "Upper West Side Soweto" by making that unique hybrid of sounds feel completely effortless. So, Vampire Weekend ends up being a more or less official validation of the long-building buzz around the band, served up in packaging that uses the Futura typeface almost as stylishly as Wes Anderson.


At times, the album sounds like someone trying to turn a Wes Anderson movie back into music (it's no surprise that the band's keyboardist also writes film scores); there's a similarly precious yet adventurous feel here, as well as a kindred eye and ear for detail. Everything is concise, concentrated, distilled, vivid; Vampire Weekend's world is extremely specific and meticulously crafted, and Vampire Weekend often feels like a concept album about preppy guys who grew up with classical music and recently got really into world music. Amazingly, instead of being alienating, the band's quirks are utterly winning. Scholarly grammar ("Oxford Comma") and architecture ("Mansard Roof") are springboards for songs with impulsive melodies, tricky rhythms, and syncopated basslines. Strings and harpsichords brush up against African-inspired chants on "M79," and lilting Afro-pop guitars and a skanking beat give way to Mellotrons on "A-Punk." It's a given that a band that's this high concept has hyper-literate lyrics: the singer's name is the very writerly Ezra Koenig, and you almost expect to see footnotes in the album's liner notes. Once again, though, Vampire Weekend's words are evocative instead of gimmicky. The irresistible "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" rhymes "Louis Vuitton" with "reggaeton" and "Benneton" and name-drops Peter Gabriel (though it's clear the band spent more time with Paul Simon's Graceland) without feeling contrived. "Campus" is another standout, with lines like "I see you walking across the campus...how am I supposed to pretend I never want to see you again?" throwing listeners into college life no matter what their age. Koenig has a boyish, hopeful quality to his voice that completes Vampire Weekend, especially on bittersweet but irrepressible songs like "I Stand Corrected" and album closer "The Kids Don't Stand a Chance." Fully realized debut albums like Vampire Weekend come along once in a great while, and these songs show that this band is smart, but not too smart for their own good.(allmusic)



“A-PUNK” / VAMPIRE WEEKEND

日本後搖滾勁旅Toe 2008年八月亞洲巡演之紀念版限量EP。特別收錄從未發行之bonus track 「Velvet Blanc」，及兩段現場演出：「New Sentimentality」及「Past and Language」。限量一千張，編號為證。

http://www.toe.st/

toe is a Japanese music group. While mentioned in many post-rock circles, their song structure and dynamics are similar to many popular math rock artists.

Toe is comprised of Kashikura Takashi on drums, Mino Takaaki on guitar, Yamane Satoshi on bass guitar, and Yamazaki Hirokazu on guitar. Toe has formally played with this line-up since the band’s inception in 2000.

The vast majority of the music is instrumental and features the swift and acute drumming of Takashi. The band is also known for its melodic, clean guitar settings. Additionally, the compositions have repetition from typical rock motifs, but use very subtle changes in beat and rhythm to form a unique sound. The band has changed their sound over their musical tenure by incorporating acoustic guitars, rhodes piano, and vibraphones in their most recent releases.

http://www.myspace.com/joanaspolicewoman

Joan As Police Woman's debut album, Real Life, was universally acclaimed. Two years since this critical and commercial success comes the much anticipated follow-up, To Survive. Songwriter, singer and multi-instrumentalist, Joan has bewitched fans across Europe and the US over the last two years and is set to garner a wealth of new devotees with To Survive.

An album of unashamedly heartfelt songs, in Joan's words, "I am always trying to dig deeper into the emotional experience. I want to access the most honest place I can, distill it and present it in a way that makes sense musically." Joan As Police Woman is: Joan Wasser (vocals, guitar, piano, violin), Rainy Orteca (bass), Parker Kindred (drums).


延伸閱讀﹕文 / 袁智聰