INTERVIEW 60. the arctic flow

Making music is - among other things - an act of honesty. And while the concept is highly subjective, sometimes we run into artists that exude this concept by creating utterly personal universes. For some people (I include myself in this group) that's where they find truly musical gems.
That's the case of The Arctic Flow, a project created by Brian Hancheck from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.
Brian's music is his way of express his melancholy through dreamy pop hooks and shoegaze, ethereal landscapes. A place of his own that we are fortunate enough to be able to experience.
The Arctic Flow has several releases since its beginning in 2008 in labels like Holiday Records, Bubbletone Discos, Beko DSL and more recently Dufflecoat Records. You can check and get them all at his bandcamp page.
Long live the sensitive ones.

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BEST EPS/SINGLES OF 2012

Following our belated look at 2012, today we share our favorite singles and EPs released last year. Lots of independent artists and breakthrough artists.
(also: a classy, affecting and gorgeous year for EPs released via Bleeding Gold Records).

EPS/SINGLES OF 2012
25 MALES MalesMalesMales independent
24 SEABRIGHT Children Of The Sun independent
23 PRAYTHING Her Skin Caught the Glow independent
22 PINEBOCKS Love Is... independent
21 LEMUR S/T EP independent
20 SAMBASSADEUR Memories / Hours Away labrador records
19 TRIPTIDES Couch Surfer independent
18 OLD MAN WINTHER Bedroom Country Vol 3 independent
17 LA ESTRELLA DE DAVID Jupiter independent
16 HEHFU Come Home EP independent
15 BENTEVEO Super Tranqui fuego amigo discos
14 THE OCEAN PARTY In A Knot sound of melbourne records
13 FOSSIL COLLECTIVE Let It Go dirty hit records
12 CIVIL LOVE S/T EP independent
11 GENERATIONALS Lucky Numbers independent
10 FAMILY OF THE YEAR Diversity nettwerk records
09 SONGS FOR WALTER Meet Me At The Empire bleeding gold records
08 THE HOLIDAY CROWD Over The Bluffs shelflife records
07 THE PANDUHS Panduh Party! beephop records
06 THE VERY MOST Ununiversilazible Us little treasure records
05 INDOOR VOICES So Smart bleeding gold records
04 SEAFOAM S/T EP lo-rise recordings
03 MADRAS thingscanchange independent
02 FIELD TRIP Cream EP independent
01 TEAR TALK Port Sunlight bleeding gold records

BEST ALBUMS OF 2012

Ok. I know it's a little late, everyone must've forgotten 2012 by now, but here's my list of best albums of 2012.

2012. ALBUMS
50 ANTIBODIES Birthmark polyvinyl
49 GRIMES Visions arbutus / 4ad
48 THE STATE BROADCASTERS Ghost We Must Carry olive grove records
47 SO MANY WIZARDS Warm Nothing french kiss
46 JACK WHITE Blunderbuss third man records
45 THE DANDELION WAR We Were Always Loyal To Lost Causes deep elm records
44 THE SCHOOL Reading Too Much Into Things Like Everything elefant records
43 M. WARD A Wasteland Companion merge records
42 POOR MOON S/T sub pop records
41 ONE TWO THREE CHEERS AND A TIGER A Lot of Talk wohnzimmer records
40 THE SORRY SHOP Bloody, Fuzzy, Cozy independent
39 TEMPLETON El Murmullo independent
38 EARLIMART System Preferences the ship records
37 DAN ROMER & BENH ZEITLIN Beasts Of The Southern Wild OST thirty3 and a 3rd records
36 SLEEPY SUN Spine Hits the end records
35 TIGER IN TRAINS Foundry independent
34 MOTORAMA Calendar talitres records
33 NETHERFRIENDS Middle America kilo records
32 SEAMUS FOGARTY God Damn You Mountain fence records
31 TWIN CABINS I'm Sure independent
30 THE LUYAS Animator dead oceans
29 EZRA FURMAN The Year Of No Returning kinetic family records
28 HIGH SAFARI Skylight special blend records
27 DELAY TREES Doze soliti records
26 HOLOGRAMS S/T captured tracks
25 JAILL Traps sub pop
24 VIOLENS True slumberland records
23 TENDER TRAP Ten Songs About Girls fortuna pop!
22 SILENT WHYS Our Rook independent
21 TANLINES Mixed Emotions true panther sounds
20 THE RAVEONETTES Observator vice records
19 THE WAKE A Light Far Out ltm records
18 SAN CISCO S/T fat possum
17 HOLIDAYS Young Love keep it yours records
16 LIGHTSHIPS Electric Cables domino records
15 ECHO LAKE Wild Peace slumberland records
14 HOUNDSDS Phone Thou chill mega chill records
13 THIEVING IRONS Behold, This Dreamer! independent
12 TWO WOUNDED BIRDS S/T holiday friends 
11 MILK TEDDY Zingers the lost and lonesome recording co.
10 ORCA TEAM Restraint happy happy birthday to me records
09 LA BIEN QUERIDA Ceremonia elefant records
08 OPOSSOM Electric Hawaii fire records
07 JOEL ALME A Tender Trap razzia
06 ADVANCE BASE A Shut-In's Prayer caldo verde
05 THE DEDDINGTONS S/T cloudberry records
04 CROCODILES Endless Flowers frenchkiss records
03 CATS ON FIRE All Blackshirts To Me soliti
02 KLAUS & KINSKI Herreros Y Fatigas jabalina musica
01 MY HEART BELONGS TO CECILIA WINTER Midnight Midnight chop records

best for guests. mike (slumberland records)

Closing 2012's edition of our Best for Guests special is Mike 'Papa Slumber', the guy that for the past 20 years, runs - by himself - one of the most important labels for independent artists: Slumberland Records.
Since 1989, Slumberland released albums from Velocity Girl, Stereolab, Boyracer, Crystal Stilts, Black Tambourine, The Aislers Set and many, many others.
Today, 20 years later, the label - that in the past spent some time inactive - is more popular than ever. The label's "gems of 2012" include the album Europe, by Allo Darlin' and Echo Lake's Wild Peace.

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MIKE SLUMBERLAND'S LUCKY SEVEN FAVE POP RECORDS OF 2012
THE GARLANDS LP

LIGHTSHIPS Fear And Doubt EP

LINDEN Bleached Highlights LP

LITERATURE Arab Spring LP

SAINT ETIENNE Words And Music LP

SEA PINKS Freak Waves LP

SMALL REACTIONS Nerve Pop 7"

best for guests. marc cantone (the city and horses)

Marc is the children's television producer behind The City And Horses, a band from Brooklyn that makes cute and witty songs with fun, endearing and nonchalant indie pop melodies.

The City and Horses 3rd album is set to be released in 2013.


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SINGLE OF THE YEAR

I'm not really good at finding new music.  At the risk of sounding gigantically pretentious, I've mostly been listening to old Noel Coward recordings and Orson Welles radio broadcasts this last year.  However, a while back my band was featured in the Band of the Day app, which does exactly what the name says: introduces users to a new band every day.  So one day the app featured Dominant Legs.  The first song I listened to was Hoop of Love.  And I didn't stop listening to it for at least three weeks.  On repeat.  For hours on end.  It's an Orange Juice style hip shaker.  The song's got more hooks than a tackle shop.  The slapback vocal is barely decipherable but I sing along anyway.  And there's a female counter vocal going on that softens things up nicely.

The video looks like a commercial for jeans or sunglasses or shirts but it made me fall further in love with the song.  Hannah Hunt, the female counterpart, is beyond fetching.  So fetching it hurts.   From what I understand she's the girlfriend of the lead singer from Girls.  Yeah, I have a shot.



This song is the single of the year.  And it's also the song I've always wanted to write.  The groove, the castoff coolness of the vocal delivery, the Orange Juice guitar.  I wanted to do that!  In fact, I've tried and failed.  But at least I can stop trying now.  Dominant Legs beat me to it.  And probably did it much better.