heart racing without a sound, every wall around you coming down

♫ Christopher Norman – Connect Me

• Who: Mr. Norman
• What: Carbonated winter-pop, kinda like Motopony, Gotye, The xx
• Where: Ann Arbor, MI + Facebook / Soundcloud  / Amazon
• When: EP 3 is out Feb 23rd.
• Why: Mr Norman landed himself on the Best Songs of 2011 list and is already back for more with this new jam. His 4-part EP series enters its second half in a few weeks and I couldn’t imagine a better segue. “Connect Me” get more upbeat while still showcasing all the somber sounds I love from “Maps.” The guy really has a talent for blending the organic and electric in beautiful and unique ways. More please!

If you glanced up from devouring your buffalo wings on Sunday you may have caught a glimpse of who you could have sworn was OK Go in a Chevy ad. You were right. (About the wings and the sighting.) Here is the full video and it packs way more punch then a Super Bowl game. PLUS: no stunt doubles! Way to keep upping your game OK Go! And thanks, I guess, to Chevy.

♫ Bear Mountain – Sing

• Who: Ian, Doug, & Kyle.
• What: Soulful loop-pop, like Germany Germany, Ray Lamontagne, Gotye.
• Where: Vancouver, BC + Facebook / Bandcamp / Amazon
• When: Live At The China Cloud is out now. A proper LP is slated for Spring.
• Why: Live albums are generally rubbish for for diehard fans of outdated bands. And then there are the odd discs that actually turn you on to a new band, making you forget you are listening to a live recording long enough that when you remember you are, you say “Woah, all that was live?” Meet Bear Mountain. They make big (and often instrumental) swirling indie rock jams with a soulful heart and a pop edge. They also cover Germany Germany. Twice. Radical.

♫ Bear Mountain – Take Me Home (Germany Germany cover)

Second best song on the album is “Two Step” but you have no excuse not to get the whole thing because its free at their Bandcamp.

we can all be free, we dance away from yesterday

♫ Thomas Azier – Metropolitan Tribe

• Who: If I told you his first name was Thomas could you guess his second name?
• What: Dramatic electro pop, kinda like Monarchy, Peguin Prison, Fenech-Soler
• Where: Berlin + Facebook / Soundcloud / Amazon
• When: Debut EP Hylas 001 is out now.
• Why: If that album art is some sort of metaphor for being hard-headed then it may as well apply to me and my love of shiny electro pop with big sing-along hooks. Azier was smart to make one of those. Even smarter to attach some great art to it.

As commenter Voller Varna said on Stereogum: “In your FACE! Kanye and Jay-Z.” Amen. I don’t even like M.I.A. but still, amen.

Directed by Romain Garvas, the same dude that will soon be directing some big name shit. Guaranteed.

it’s not that i don’t think you’re lovely it’s that i want you to be happy

♫ Museum Mouth – Blood Mountain

• Who: Graham, Karl, & Kory
• What: Indie/rock/pop, kinda like Wildlife, Handsome Furs, Built By Animals
• Where: Southport, NC + Facebook / Bandcamp / Amazon
• When: LP Sexy But Not Happy is out now.
• Why: Because this jam is rough and fuzzy rock n roll. And because the rest of the album it comes from is available free. And because the name of that album is perfect.

And the magical adventure begins…

Did I mention that this song gets me waaay more excited for Happy To You (on March 26th).

forget the absence it’s the patience i loathe

♫ Gemini Club – By Surprise

• Who: Dan, Tom, and Gordon.
• What: Self-described “indie electronica”, like Penguin Prison & Capital Cities
• Where: Chicago, IL + Facebook / Soundcloud
• When: Here We Sit out soon
• Why: Yesterday we had a post that stemmed from a recommendation from another music artist. Today we have music that stemmed from a reader suggestion on the post that stemmed from an artist recommendation. It’s a Music-ception. Goodness! Anyway, waking up to this jam today is the best thing that’s happened in a groggy haze in quite some time. Gemini Club knows how to make it hit; and hit it does.

don’t want to be here forever, i know what i’ve got to do

♫ Nightlife – On the Run

• Who: Darin & Caroline
• What: Dreamy pop, like Stepdad
• Where: Ann Arbor, Michigan + Facebook / Bandcamp
• When: Radio EP out now
• Why: When great bands turn you on to other great bands it’s always one of those wonderful and enlightening moments in life. Well, we can thank Stepdad and Nathan K. (as well as reaffirmation from TBE faithful Joyce!) for the unearthing of the gem that is “On the Run”. In music, sometimes simple is better and less is more. This is mo’ betta for sure.

my elevation in the morning, my satisfaction starts in the evening

♫ The Fantasies – Gimme Bubblegum!!!

• Who: Brett & James
• What: Surfy garage pop, like Wavves, The Denzels, Art Imperial
• Where: Northampton, Mass. + Facebook / Bandcamp / Amazon
• When: Their self-titled debut LP is out now and FREE.
• Why: There are a lot of injustices in the world but one of the bigger ones has got to be that The Fantasies exist and only 89 people seem to care. Well, Facebook “likes” aside, these two massholes sure know how to channel the short and dirty magic of the coasts. Their songs bristle with energy and the simple production relays the raw talent at work. Their debut LP is the most fun 22 minutes I’ve had in forever. And thats 9 tracks! The Fantasies don’t wast anyones time and I love it.

♫ The Fantasies – Tammy The Tease

“Gimme Bubblegum!!!” (top) earns it’s exclamation points with a knee-buckling pace of jangly bounce that  is pure joy. Perfect for turning any frown upside down. And then putting it in a swimsuit! “Midnight Boogie” goes full spazz mode for a freight train of fuzzed out rock candy that will leave the ADHD set ready for a nap. “Tammy The Tease” (above) kicks back with a cold one and ponders the complexity of the fairer sex, showcasing The Fantasies talent with the softer jams. “Turn Me On” gets even tenderer. But enough play-by-play. The album is free and you are smart. Therefore you know what to do.