Authenticity plays an abundant role when it comes to music making, a quality which French band Jamaica has most certainly maintained. I Think I Like You 2 is quirky with the right amount of grunge aesthetic.

Be sure to check out the band’s show at Wrongbar on October 19th at 8pm.

Jamaica- I Think I Like You 2

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Bjork is one of those artists that I will always like. What prompted this post on such an old song was a friend of mine claimed that no one really likes Bjork, they just like her for the sake of being different. Yah, some of her stuff is out there but people really do tend to forget that she has created some of the most simple music that will with out a doubt (and has in many cases) stand the test of time.

Bjork-Hyber-Ballad

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James Blake really impressed me with this one. With more and more people entering into the dubstep world its become increasingly difficult to standout. Blake creates some of the most interesting beats while maintaining the simplicity of what dubstep is supposed to be.

James Blake- CMYK

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The title of this track kinda spoke to me. I don’t know about you guys but in my youth all me and my friends did was spend the day attempting to find alcohol and then spend the evening in the park. So really we only ever had one reason but it was a good one. Home grown Hamilton boy Kid Years has come out with a track that is perfect for summer time nights just hanging out on the patio, really digging it and hoping for more releases like this before the end of summer.

Kid Years- 33 Reasons (To Go To The Park

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There is a certain obscureness about Delorean’s Real Love. Initially, my first reaction was to skip to the next song, but as soon as the vocals began, I was more than proven wrong. The meshing of all the individual sounds with the addition of the lead vocals create a peculiar yet alluring result.

Delorean- Real Love

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Jai Paul out of England is here with one huge track. It may take a few seconds to get into but once that beat hits its unlike anything I’ve heard in a long long time. His vocals are soft and dreary and match perfectly with the sad forgotten sound of the song. Can’t wait to hear more from this guy.

Jai Paul- BTSTU

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A neat and grabbing track gushing with unique vocals and an even more interesting arrangement. A very good re-creation of Y△CHT‘s original Psychic City by Joe Goddard.

Y△CHT- Psychic City (Joe Goddard Remix)

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Cults- Oh My God

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Old? Sure. But Fire off of Busta Rhymes‘ 2000 album Anarchy still conjures up the same emotion felt when heard a decade ago. Awe.

Busta Rhymes- Fire

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It’s been a slow summer for new releases, well good ones at least, and finally something worth blogging about has popped up. Yuck out of England make some of the most enchanting music I have heard in a while. Their music sounds a whole bunch like the XX just with much stronger vocals and less sexually driven lyrics. Their album is set to release later this year and if these two tracks are anything to judge by I am sure they will be topping just about everyones best of lists.

Yuck- Automatic
Yuck- Daughter

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We Are Scientists are a California pop/rock band who are now based in New York. And just to confuse things their sound, especially on this new album (released in June), is reminiscent of some of the best of the British Post-New Wave of the 80s or the New Romantics era. The band cites Franz Ferdinand, Bowie, Velvet Underground and Fleetwood Mac as influences, and you can certainly hear FF(I Don’t Bite) and FM (in the spacious melodies and harmonies) in the music, but to me the songs on Barbara have just as much in common with Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Duran Duran or Psychedelic Furs without the synths. Rules Don’t Stop, the lead song, has a sound like vintage Duran Duran especially the guitar riffs which brought Andy Taylor to mind. The lyrics, however, are much better than just about anything found on a 80s post-wave record. “It’s not as if it’s gonna kill anyone/If there’s no victim then there’s no crime/Just draw another if you think we’ve crossed the line” smartly incites you to do something you aren’t quite sure you should. It’s a sharp-witted pop song that is as catchy as chickenpox from a 2 yr. old. In fact this whole album is full of cleverly crafted alternative/pop songs that will have you dancing around and humming long after the last note dies.

This is We Are Scientists fourth album and the first with ex-Razorlight drummer, Andy Burrows. This band is one of the most atypical bands I’ve had the pleasure to cover but I guess when a band gets its name from a conversation with a U-Haul guy who was inspecting their rental van, what can you expect? You can’t really say much about a band that runs both an advice column and a restaurant review column from their website. They also have a features column that has some interesting stuff on it such as tips on horse blankets, a list of things to say if you want to diss someone and some very bad jokes. Apparently their live shows are equal parts great music and comedy. How can you not love a band who calls their fans, “Lucid, discerning people with amazing taste and salacious physiques.”

But it would be a mistake to think that this band doesn’t take their craft seriously. The songs, as I said previously, have spacious melodies. They aren’t minimalist in any way but they have space to breath and flow. Perhaps this is how Fleetwood Mac influences their songs because they have that same ability to write a song that has density but still feels roomy and open. It helps that the production doesn’t get in the way of the song but compliments the expansive feel and keeps everything well balanced. The vocals are right where they should lying on top of the structure of the song with the guitars and drums offering support and melodic agreement. The lyrics are easily discernable, which is good because they are strong and sophisticated. “Part of me is screaming, you should just come out and ask her/As if there were a chance in hell that got me what I’m after” from Ambition and “We all have a soft spot for learning the words that we know mean nothing” from You Should Learn are two of my favourite passages.

Barbara should (hopefully) do well for the boys and (again hopefully) make them as popular here in North America as they are in Britain. Outstanding tracks are the lead single, Rules Don’t Stop, Nice Guys, Ambition and Foreign Kicks, a beautiful semi-ballad. The theme of these songs is the same one that comprises 90% of the musical landscape, namely relationships and love. Break It Up is about being out with friends and not wanting the evening to end and Jack and Ginger about the awkwardness of a one-night stand. Both songs are about loneliness and not wanting to be alone. The astute writing stops these songs from being maudlin and trite and the bouncy melody keeps them accessible and listenable.

For more information about the band and for upcoming tour dates you can visit their MySpace, Twitter, YouTube and Facebook pages. You can buy all of W.A.S.’s albums from iTunes and Amazon. Be aware, however if you click on the links on their MySpace page it takes you to the U.K. store. You can also go here for a free download of the song W.A.S did for England for the World Cup.

Jack & Ginger video from their gig at Glastonbury this year:

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With his newly released mixtape Kush and Orange Juice Wiz Khalifa is further engraving a name for himself in hip-hop. His talent is specific; very subdued and calm, yet he has the dynamism to over power many in his genre at only 22 years old.

Up is one of the tracks which elicits his lyrical ability, as he suavely raps over the simple and effective beat. For any hip-hop lover, I would highly recommend downloading his mixtape here.

Wiz Khalifa- Up

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Fishing have become my new obsession. OOOO is undeniably bubbly and can’t help but make even a rainy day feel a bit sunnier. This duo out Sydney are slated to have a big year ahead of them, with multiple releases scheduled I have a feeling we will be hearing a lot from these guys this year.

Fishing-OOOO

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This track just hit the internet and is causing quite the buzz and with good reason. Cut Copy has always been a favourite of mine, well a forgotten favourite to be honest. I have not given them a listen in some time so it was nice to be reminded how good they really are with this track.

Cut Copy- Where I’m Going

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Nujax are back and hitting it harder than ever. Their new EP just released today and the Montreal duo are going across the pond for their first European tour, things are about to blow up for these guys and they couldn’t deserve it more. If you haven’t heard their EP yet you should check it out, its by far one of the best electro EP’s I have heard in a while, free listens on their soundcloud.
Nujax- Jurassic Zouk

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