A couple of years ago I made a mix of songs from and inspired by the films of David Lynch. I wish this Dirty Beaches song had existed then, because it would have been a perfect addition. I can almost see the record spinning while the pine trees of Twin Peaks sway ominously in the [...]

At the pace of the uber-fast, Twitter-ific world we live in now, last month’s SXSW 2011 music festival might be already gone and forgotten. But for some of us (like me) the experience still resonates. Thirty-plus live shows, tons of memorable moments, and a whole lot of tofu kimchi tacos from a food truck: it [...]

Of the 2,000 (!) bands playing at South by Southwest this year, Low is one of the few artists on my can’t-miss list. I’ve been a huge fan of theirs ever since the minimalist, devastating beauty of The Curtain Hits the Cast first wrung itself from my speakers back in my college days in Colorado. Though I’ve seen [...]

I first heard this song while listening to oOoOO’s excellent and eclectic FACT mix, and I have to say it’s been stuck in my head (and on repeat) ever since. I especially love the rolling, fuzzy bass and the instrumental break that’s reminiscent of Middle Eastern music in the best possible way. In the words of no [...]

The sleek and black-clad duo of The Raveonettes, one of the consistently best live bands that I’ve seen, are back with a new album, Raven in the Grave, to be released April 5 on Vice Records. Singer/guitarist Sharin Foo characterizes the mood of the new album as one of “ethereal defiance”; it’s as good a [...]

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours listening to an exclusive mix for BBC Radio by Jamie xx, the DJ behind the distinctive sound of the xx who’s also recently forged a  remixing style all his own. Streaming for the next few days at BBC’s Radio 6, it’s a fascinating look into the eclectic playlist [...]

Icelandic musician and artist Sindri Már Sigfsson–better known as Sin Fang Bous, and now going by just Sin Fang–had one of my favorite releases of 2009 with Clangour. Now he’s releasing a new effort, Summer Echoes, which comes out March 15 on Morr Music. The first single, “Always Everything,” continues Sin Fang’s organic, vivid, collage-like [...]

Recently discovered this beautiful new song from the Montreal-based Young Galaxy, who have toured and worked with another of my favorite bands, The Besnard Lakes. While Young Galaxy’s past work has more of a slow-droning guitar-based vibe a la the Besnards, this track represents a different direction, combining a dual vocals and a chanting chorus [...]

So it was really tough to pick ten albums from a year so full of fascinating new music–and even tougher to rank them in some kind of order. Some albums I listened to a lot ended up being left off the list (ceo, Kid Cudi, Coco Rosie, Arcade Fire), while other artists only released EPs [...]

On Tuesday December 7, Matador Records is re-releasing one of my favorite albums of the year, Perfume Genius‘ Learning, in a new vinyl slipcase edition with three additional songs: “Dreeem”, “Your Drum,” and “Divine Faxes.” You can pre-order the new version here. Though all too brief in length (even with a few more songs added [...]