fairweather friends

FERNS FAIRWEATHER FRIENDS (Independent, 2011)

Malaysian indiepop darlings - Ferns - are back with their second album 'Fairweather Friends'. It comes out almost four years after the acclaimed 'On Botany', that in 2007 created a languid, dreamy and atmospheric world where green gardens and fields were the scenery for an idyllic and deeply melancholic combination of indiepop, shoegaze delicacy and layers of sound contrastating with whispery vocals.
If 'On Botany' was an album for sunsets and contemplation, 'Fairweather Friends' is perfect for mid-afternoons spent in the middle of the city and where you can be surrounded by people.
It's great to see a band that left such a strong impression with their first album come back years after with songs that have their DNA and yet surprise you with new perspectives and colors.
'Fairweather Friends' keeps the fragility of delicate melodies of Ferns' debut album but this time the layers of instruments give space to a more clear, acoustic and urban aesthetic. My end of the year lists consider albums released between Novembers, that's why this album was absent in my 2011 list.
The release of their second album proved that Ferns is a band to watch, listen and feel. Their indie pop feels fresh and evocative.
You can stream their albums on bandcamp. Below, you'll find a link and how can you get the album.


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if sopa was evil. acta is hell.

stop acta

how i roseiviounessiously tipjilted the gevious on a sunday afternoon

NIKO NIKO! HOW I ROSEIVIOUNESSIOUSLY TIPJILTED THE GEVIOUS ON A SUNDAY AFTERNOON (self released, 2012)

Niko Niko! is the new project of Nickolai Nilsen, a norwegian musician formerly known as Princess Niko.
Princess Niko  recorded lots of songs and released some of them on Cloudberry Records. Those who were lucky enough to hear all of them, were treated with fun and catchy pop songs and duets sang by Nickolai's "lows and highs".
Now, years after his last release, two new songs surface the web. Playful and fun are part of Nickolai's musical DNA, no doubt about it. Sappy... happy... indie pop! Welcome back, Niko!

You can download and listen to 'How I Roseiviounessiously Tipjilted the Gevious on a Sunday Afternoon' and 'Z' here.
(Unfortunately, Urort doesn't have an embedding option.)

Here's an interview I made with Niko in 2010.

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you make me sleepy

FIELD TRIP YOU MAKE ME SLEEPY (self released, 2012)

Blending shoegaze, lo-fi and indie pop, 4 boys from Melbourne (a.k.a. Field Trip) released a song on the first day of 2012.
'You Make Me Sleepy' has languid and mellow melodies, creating a dreamy - and far from sleepy - musical atmosphere.



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love, tears & spiritual blessings

KARIBEAN LOVE, TEARS & SPIRITUAL BLESSINGS (self released, 2011)

Karibean is a band formed by three guys from the east coast of Italy that in 2011, released a 5 track EP that could be described, at least, as timeless and anthemic pop.
'Gregorian Spring' is an absolute joy to the ears, bringing the best of the winter-ish 80's indiepop and soaking them into the 60's sunny melodies of The Beach Boys.
You can get Love, Tears & Spiritual Blessings for free on Bandcamp.



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just for fun

ALPACA SPORTS JUST FOR FUN (Independent, 2012)

Andreas Jonsson is from Gothenburg. He's the guy behind Alpaca Sports (fun name!) and 'Just For Fun' is his debut single.
He teamed up with producer Kalle von Hall and musicians from projects like Mattias Hellberg and the White Moose to create breezy indie pop with the swedish quality stamp.
As a first ever single, 'Just For Fun' accomplishes its mission to get you hooked and interested.
Listening to the single and its b-side, I feel that Alpaca Sports will, eventually, deliver a great - and nuanced - indie pop album.

JUST FOR FUN

I'LL NEVER WIN


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the national mall

BLUEBRAIN THE NATIONAL MALL (2011)


Here's a new concept that makes the line between albums and apps thinner.

Hays and Ryan Holladay are from Washington, DC and created the first location-aware album. The album is an app based in GPS technology. I haven't heard it because it's only available for Washington and has nearly 3 hours of original electronic music covering 264 zones of the Mall. As the listener moves around, the music changes based on his location.

Ryan Holloday said in an interview for The Washington Post: 

“It’s like a ‘Choose Your Own Adventure’ of an album. The music is fluctuating based on your chosen path.”

Last October, a second location aware album was released called Central Park 'Listen to the Light'.

FCTN's followed the process and created a short documentary.

Even though the album cannot be experienced by most of us, the concept is brilliant.

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sir, i am a good man

LONELY TOURIST SIR, I AM A GOOD MAN INDEPENDENT, 2011

Paul Tierney is from Glasgow but is based in Bristol. A year ago, he released Sir, I Am A Good Man, his  highly enjoyable debut album, available for download on bandcamp.
Actually it's an exquisite and brilliant collection of songs. Extremely strong when it comes to lyrics; profoundly touching when it comes to melodies.
(Mostly) acoustic tunes with strumming guitars accompanied by wise lyrics and gorgeous orchestrations (claps are included). The best example is 'Watch for the Sharks'.
An indie pop album that gets you for its vibrant melancholy and Tierney's ability to put thoughts into lyrics (his scottish accent just makes things even easier to fall for).
Achingly underrated.





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2011. BEST FOR GUESTS. 39 azure blue

photo by Ellin Bandmann

Here's a late contribution to the BEST FOR GUESTS series. And it's a special one.
Tobias may be known for being part of Irene and Laurel Music but the highlight of his career is definitely his new solo project called Azure Blue.
By now, you already know that his debut album Rule of Thirds got into 2nd place in my list of best albums of 2011. It couldn't be different: in a year where electronic music often seemed overly produced, Tobias delivered an electro pop album like no other, shifting the landscape and turning oceans into skies.
Songs like 'Long Way Down' - with melodies that remind me of Sarah Records - and 'Chesil Beach' a calm, yet powerful and profound love song are meant to live forever.
Dreamy, oceanic, pop as good as pop can be and blue.

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Here's Tobias' lists featuring international and swedish albums and songs, videos, shows and movies.

INTERNATIONAL ALBUMS
FRANK OCEAN NOSTALGIA, ULTRA
JOHN MAUS WE MUST BECOME THE PITILESS CENSORS OF OURSELVES
DESTROYER KAPUTT
WU LYF GO TELL FIRE TO THE MOUNTAIN
M83 HURRY UP, WE'RE DREAMING
RUSTIE GLASS SWORDS
NICOLAS JAAR SPACE IS ONLY NOISE
DRAKE TAKE CARE
KUEDO SEVERANT
ONEOTHRIX POINT NEVER REPLICA
JEREMY JAY DREAM DIARY
KURT VILE SMOKE RING FOR MY HALO
CRAFT SPELLS IDLE LABOR
WASHED OUT WITHIN AND WITHOUT
HIGH PLACES ORIGINAL COLOURS
LIL WAYNE THE CARTER IV
THE WEEKEND HOUSE OF BALLOONS
CHAD VALLEY EQUATORIAL ULTRAVOX
ARCADE FIRE THE SUBURBS
WILD FLAG S/T
COLD CAVE CHERISH THE LIGHT YEARS
JAMES BLAKE S/T
THE WAR ON DRUGS SLAVE AMBIENT
GIL SCOTT HERON & JAMIE XX WE'RE NEW HERE
SPACE DIMENSION CONTROLLER THE PATHWAY TO TIRAQUAON 6
FLORENCE + THE MACHINE CEREMONIALS
FORD & LOPATIN CHANNEL PRESSURE
GIANNI ROSSI STAR VEHICLE (THE ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SCORE)
TYLER, THE CREATOR GOBLIN
CUT COPY ZONOSCOPE
ZOLA JESUS CONATUS
HOLY GHOST! S/T
TORO Y MOI UNDERNEATH THE PINE
METRONOMY THE ENGLISH RIVERA
SIMIAN GHOST LOVELORN
SBTRKT S/T
THEOPHILUS LONDON TIMEZ ARE WEIRD THESE DAYS
SWEDISH ALBUMS
THE SOUND OF ARROWS VOYAGE
JONATHAN JOHANSSON KLAGOMUREN
KORALLREVEN AN ALBUM BY KORALLREVEN
ALEXIS WEAK TILL MINNE AV
THE AMAZING GENTLE STREAM
ROFFE RUFF BARRABAS
LONEY DEAR HALL MUSIC
MATTIAS ALKBERG ANARKIST
LO-FI-FNK THE LAST SUMMER
FLOWERS IN THE AIR S/T
ACID HOUSE KINGS MUSIC SOUNDS BETTER WITH YOU
ALF VI VILLE FöRäNDRA VÅR TID MEN DEN FöräNDRADE OSS
INTERNATIONAL SONGS
POOLSIDE DO YOU BELIEVE
JOHN MAUS BELIEVER
DESTROYER KAPUTT
LANA DEL REY VIDEO GAMES
M83 MIDNIGHT CITY
FRANK OCEAN SWIM GOOD
TOTALLY ENORMOUS EXTINCT DINOSAURS GARDEN
GIL SCOTT HERON & JAMIE XX I'LL TAKE CARE OF YOU
ZOO KID OUT GETTING RIBS
WU LYF WE BROS
BEYONCE I MISS YOU
LIGHT ASYLUM A CERTAIN PERSON
KURT VILE JESUS FEVER 192
THEOPHILUS LONDON WHY EVEN TRY?
JACQUES GREENE ANOTHER GIRL
COLD CAVE CONFETTI
RADIOHEAD LOTUS FLOWER
MOUNT KIMBIE CARBONATED
LIL WAYNE SHE WILL
KING KRULE THE NOOSE OF JAH CITY
FRIENDS FRIEND CRUSH
NEON INDIAN POLISH GIRL
TORO Y MOI STILL SOUND
PATRICK WOLF TOGETHER
METRONOMY THE BAY
SWEDISH SONGS
JONATHAN JOHANSSON STOCKHOLM
AIR FRANCE IT FEELS GOOD TO BE AROUND YOU
THE SOUND OF ARROWS NOVA
PEARL FICTION THE RUBY FEVER
DANTE RUNNERS
DET VACKA LIVET VILJAN (DAN LISSVIK REMIX)
PACIFIC UNSPOKEN (ANORAAK REMIX)
AMANDA MAIR DOUBT
KARL X JOHAN FANTASIES
DUVCHI TURTLEDUVS
ALEXIS WEAK TILL MINNE AV
KORALLREVEN HONEY MINE
PALPITATION IN FIVE YEARS (NIVA REMIX)
LYKKE LI I FOLLOW RIVERS (THE MAGICIAN REMIX)
NIVA DIRTY WATER
ROFFE RUFF FARVäL
LABYRINT ORTENS FAVORITER
SKANSROS FELIX
MONTY ALDRIG
ALF INGA TUNGA SKYAR #2
FLOWERS IN THE AIR TELL ME
AUTISTERNA SOV
BIG FOX CUT YOU OUT
HELL ON WHEELS BABY
BEST MUSIC VIDEOS
PAUL MCCARTNEY BLUE SAY (dir. Jack McCoy)

THE SOUND OF ARROWS NOVA (dir. Mattia Erik Johansson)

DESTROYER KAPUTT (dir. Dawn Garcia)

BEST LIVE SHOWS
PRINCE WAY OUT WEST
THE ARCADE FIRE POPAGANDA
MORRISEY HULTSFREDSFESTIVALEN
HENRIK BERGGREN PEACE & LOVE
DOOM HULTSFREDSFESTIVALEN
STAR SLINGER HULTSFREDSFESTIVALEN
A-TRAK HULTSFREDSFESTIVALEN
JEREMY JAY STRAND
KURT VILE STRAND
FANNY STRAND
THE AMAZING LILLA HOTELLBAREN
CRAFT SPELLS DEBASER SLUSSEN
GIRL UNIT SLAKTHUSET
KORALLREVEN STRAND
WATCH OUT FOR THESE SWEDES 2012!
FANNY (Hybris)
NOONIE BAO (Hybris)
AMANDA MAIR (Labrador)
BEST FILMS
WINTER'S BONE DEBRA GRANIK
THREE TOM TYKWER
BLACK SWAN DARREN ARONOFSKY
MELANCHOLIA LARS VON TRIER
LET ME IN MATT REEVES
THE TRIP MICHAEL WINTERBOTTOM
DRIVE NICOLAS WINDING REFN
BRIGHTON ROCK ROWAN JOFFE
BRIDESMAIDS PAUL FEIG

thingscanchange

MADRAS THINGSCANCHANGE (self released, 2012)

First thing I listened in 2012. Still amazed.
Madràs is a band led by brothers Jeevan and Mathew based in Fort Worth, Texas. The band's name is a reference to their hometown Chennai, in India, formerly known as Madras.
Thingscanchange has 3 delicate post punk, bedroom pop driven songs. Less than 10 minutes of calm - almost ambient - tunes and nostalgia. 'Older', the opening track is absolutely gorgeous.
Jeevan and Mathew also play together in the band Fou.
You can find this and other releases on their bandcamp.



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