====| MtyMx ALL AGES FESTIVAL OF ART AND MUSIC |====
It is my pleasure to announce the inaugural MtyMx All Ages Festival of Art and Music!
The MtyMx festival will happen on March 20th, 21st, and 22nd at Autocinema Las Torres in Monterrey, Mexico
The MtyMx festival is a collaboration between Yo Garage |
http://yogarage.mx | and Todd P |
http://toddpnyc.com | and will feature up to 25 bands a day for three days, playing outdoors on two stages in a beautiful drive-in movie theater on the side of a mountain in the Sierra Madre Oriental. Over one third of the bands playing are from Mexico!
Tickets are $30 USD ($400 pesos) for a three day pass. 78 bands! PURCHASE TIX:
http://tinyurl.com/mtymx3dtixBandTickets will be available at the door for $15 USD ($200 pesos) per day. We will not be offering daily advance tickets online, only the 3 day pass (which is considerably cheaper, buy that!).
Sets will be staggered (ie. no overlapping sets!), on two identical stages, one after the other, so you can see everyone!
The festival includes a substantial visual art element as well, with the perimeter of the space decorated by huge original murals and projected video pieces (on the drive-in screen of course!) by such artists Stephanie Davidson, Sumi Ink Club, Jesse Spears, Katja Mater, JD Beltran + many more to be announced soon!
You pronounce the name like it looks, just say Em Tee Why Em Ex!
"MTY" is a common abbreviation for Monterrey, "MX" is for Mexico!
ACCOMODATIONS
We are offering onsite camping as well as discounted rooms in a 3 star hotel in downtown Monterrey. WE ARE TAKING RESERVATIONS NOW for rooms at the Hotel Fundador and for tent rental onsite at Autocinema Las Torres (info below).
TRANSPORTATION
Discount shuttle buses will run at 2am, 6am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm, and 10pm daily between Austin, TX and the festival site in Monterrey, as well as back from Monterrey to Austin, through Tuesday at 6pm. WE ARE TAKING RESERVATIONS NOW for bus seats (info below).
|| SATURDAY ||
:: 11:30 - LOS PLANETAS (Spain)
:: 11pm - DAN DEACON
:: 10:30 - ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE (Japan)
:: 10pm - CHIKITA VIOLENTA (Mexico)
:: 9:30 - TELEPATHE
:: 9pm - QUIERO CLUB (Mexico)
:: 8:30 - Das Racist
:: 8pm - Toro Y Moi
:: 7:30 - Lázaro Valiente (Mexico)
:: 7pm - Male Bonding (UK)
:: 6:30 - Hunx and his Punx
:: 6pm - El Resplandor (Mexico)
:: 5:30 - Wet Hair
:: 5pm - Pocahaunted
:: 4:30 - Soho Riots (Mexico)
:: 4pm - Teengirl Fantasy
:: 3:30 - The Carrots (Texas)
:: 3pm - Yo! Linares (Mexico)
:: 2:30 - Explode Into Colors
:: 2pm - The Coathangers
:: 1:30 - Kría Brekkan -------- of múm / Storsveit Nix Noltes (tentative)
:: 1pm - Anamanguchi
:: 12.30 - Videohippos
:: 12pm - Drawlings
:: 11:30 - Adventure
:: 11am - Le Macabre Party (Mexico)
::
:: 1am - Aa (aka BIG A little a)
:: 1:30 - Sun Araw
:: 2am - Young Prisms
:: 2:30 - Campfires
:: 3am - Ringo Deathstarr (Texas)
|| SUNDAY ||
:: 11:30 - ANDREW WK
:: 11pm - FUCKED UP (Canada)
:: 10:30 - INDIAN JEWELRY (Texas)
:: 10pm - WASHED OUT
:: 9:30 - GRANT HART -------- of Hüsker Dü
:: 9pm - LOS FANCY FREE (Mexico)
:: 8:30 - Tanlines
:: 8pm - Small Black
:: 7:30 - Los Margaritos (Mexico)
:: 7pm - Chinese Stars
:: 6:30 - Banjo or Freakout! (UK)
:: 6pm - The Wave Pictures (UK)
:: 5:30 - Talk Normal
:: 5pm - The Beets
:: 4:30 - XYX (Mexico)
:: 4pm - So Cow (Ireland)
:: 3:30 - Beach Fossils
:: 3pm - Antoine Reverb (Mexico)
:: 2:30 - The Bitters (Canada)
:: 2pm - TV Ghost
:: 1:30 - Los Llamarada (Mexico)
:: 1pm - Total Abuse (Texas)
:: 12:30 - Coasting
:: 12pm - Cloud Nothings
:: 11:30 - White Ninja (Mexico)
:: 11am - Piyama Party (Mexico)
::
:: 10am - Modern Dance from Mexico & USA
:: curated Estrella Sanza (Los Llamarada) & Busy Gagnes (Telepathe)
::
:: 1am - MNDR
:: 1:30 - The Mantles
:: 2am - Teeth Mountain
:: 2:30 - KIT
:: 3am - Twin Sister
:: 3:30 - TBA
|| MONDAY ||
:: 12am - LIARS
:: 11:30 - NO AGE
:: 11am - NEON INDIAN (Texas/Mexico)
:: 10:30 - Ratas del Vaticano (Mexico)
:: 10pm - THEE OH SEES
:: 9:30 - Lemonade
:: 9pm - BamBam (Mexico)
:: 8:30 - Lucky Dragons
:: 8pm - Liturgy
:: 7:30 - Jóvenes y Sexys (Venezuela)
:: 7pm - Salem
:: 6:30 - DD/MM/YYYY (Canada)
:: 6pm - Alexico (Mexico)
:: 5:30 - Best Fwends (Texas)
:: 5pm - Sandwitches
:: 4:30 - Mockinpott (Mexico)
:: 4pm - Fergus and Geronimo (Texas)
:: 3:30 - Big Troubles
:: 3pm - HEALTH (Rhinoceropolis)
:: 2:30 - Pictureplane (Rhinoceropolis)
:: 2pm - Gauntlet Hair (Rhinoceropolis)
:: 1:30 - Tearist (Rhinoceropolis)
:: 1pm - Josephine and the Mousepeople (Rhinoceropolis)
:: 12:30 - HIGH PLACES (Rhinoceropolis)
:: 12pm - Mentira Mentira (Mexico)
:: 11:30 - Sr. Amable & Mr. Racoon (Mexico)
:: 11am - Baths
::
:: 10am - Bilingual, Women's Drum Workshop hosted by Tom Tom Magazine
::
:: 1:30 - Air Waves
:: 2am - Fluffy Lumbers
:: 2:30 - Lawrence Arabia (New Zealand)
:: 3am - Teenage Cool Kids (Texas)
:: 3:30 - TBA
====| MtyMx ALL AGES FESTIVAL OF ART AND MUSIC |====
Organized by Todd P & Yo Garage
w/ Ric Leichtung, Fiona Campbell, & Jesse Hlebo
March 20th-22nd 2010 // 12pm – 12am // Avenida Lázaro Cárdenas @ Avenida Las Torres, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico
MAP:
http://tinyurl.com/mtytxsiteBuy a three day festival pass ($30 USD aka $400 pesos) here:
http://tinyurl.com/mtymx3dtix||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| TOURING SOUTH |
For the past 4 years, Todd P and countless volunteers have organized an independent festival during SxSW at Ms. Bea’s in Austin, Texas. With over 100 bands featured and a crowd in excess of 2500 people, Ms. Bea’s has consistently provided a free, all-ages alternative to the badges and wristbands of 6th Street. This year, Todd is packing up, joining forces with Monterrey, Mexico-based Independent promoters Yo Garage, and introducing a new post SxSW tour routing direction: South!
Monterrey, Mexico is roughly the same distance as other “next stop on your tour” cities like Dallas, Houston, New Orleans, El Paso, etc.. The idea of the festival is to provide bands with another option during those 3-4 days after SXSW, where they risk playing under attended, money losing shows because a) it’s spring break, b) it’s a Sunday night in Oklahoma City and c) every other band in the world is also trying to play a show on a Sunday night in Oklahoma City!
| 3 DAYS + 75 BANDS + US, MEXICAN, & INTERNATIONAL BANDS TOGETHER |
The MtyMx Festival will begin at noon on Saturday, March 20th (overlapping with the final day of SxSW), continuing until midnight, on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Up to 25 bands a day will play staggered (no overlapping sets) on 2 stages, both featuring professional, festival quality sound. The festival will be $30 USD (roughly 390 pesos) for a 3-day pass, all-ages, and will include musical artists from all over the world, with fully one third of the bands booked hailing from within Mexico. Because of restrictive US border controls, Mexican national bands rarely get the chance to play alongside international acts or in front of international audiences.
| OUTDOORS AT A DRIVE IN MOVIE THEATER ON THE SIDE OF A MOUNTAIN |
The venue is spectacular: "Autocinema Las Torres" is a drive-in movie theater on the side of a mountain, overlooking Monterrey’s old city towards the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental and Monterrey’s signature mountain "La Silla." This site is a regular location for concerts, raves, parties and other large-scale events.
The space can host 5,000+ people, features modern toilet facilities, on-site ambulance for emergencies, professional security, secure on-site parking, a vintage concession stand, local food vendor trucks (i.e. some of the finest tacos in Northern Mexico!), and a full bar.
| WORLD CLASS VISUAL ART |
Surrounding the perimeter of the site will be mural pieces by prominent U.S., European and Latin American artists curated by Jesse Hlebo in the spirit of our NYC arts and all ages events publication “Showpaper.” Confirmed artists include Rudy Shepherd, Stephanie Davidson, Sumi Ink Club, Jesse Spears, Dena Yago, Shalo P, Katja Mater, JD Beltran + more added daily. Further, we will utilize the site’s classic, curved drive in movie screen to show avant video works.
| HOTEL LODGING AVAILABLE AT HOTEL FUNDADOR |
MtyMX is proud to offer quality hotel rooms at the Hotel Fundador in the historic colonial “Barrio Antiguo” of Monterrey.
| HOTEL IMAGE |– http://tinyurl.com/hotelfundador
| HOTEL IMAGE |–http://travelbymexico.com/leon/fotos/fundador/foto4.jpg
We are able to offer rooms on Saturday 3/20, Sunday 3/21, and Monday 3/22, at these rates:
Private Room w/ 1 Double Bed = $35 per room per night
Private Room w/ 1 Kingsize Bed = $40 per room per night
Private Room w/ 2 Double Beds = $45 per room per night
Hostel Bed in Shared Room = $20 per bed per night
To reserve a room, simply send an email to mtymxhotel@gmail.com with the type of room/bed you are looking for and which dates, both in the subject line.
We will reply to confirm the reservation within 48 hours, with payment instructions.
You MUST book these rooms via MtyMx, Fundador is not accepting reservations through their front desk during these dates.
| ONSITE CAMPING AVAILABLE, WITH TENT RENTAL |
MtyMX is proud to offer 2 person tents, onsite @ Autocinema Las Torres. for $20 per night. You must provide your own sleeping bag.
| TENT IMAGE |– http://spacedage.com/todd/tent.jpg
We are able to offer tents on Saturday 3/20, Sunday 3/21, and Monday 3/22, at $20 per tent per night.
Tent city will feature a late night bar, 24 hour security, a place to check your backpacks, and a security fence separating Tent City from the rest of the site, with controlled access.
To reserve a tent, simply send an email to mtymxtent@gmail.com with which dates you are looking for in the subject line.
We will reply to confirm the reservation within 48 hours, with payment instructions.
You MUST book onsite camping via MtyMx, we will not allow camping without a reservation.
| EASY BUS TRAVEL TO & FROM AUSTIN, TEXAS |
The festival will also be providing a reduced cost shuttle bus service from Austin to Monterrey and back.
Tickets are $29 each way. To reserve a seat on the bus, simply send an email to mtymxbus@gmail.com with the exact departure and return you're looking for in the subject line.
The first bus will be an "after bar red-eye" bus leaving Austin at 2am on Friday night/Saturday morning. Buses will run every 4 hours, 24 hours a day, with buses leaving at 6am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm, 10pm, and 2am daily. The last bus will leave Austin for Monterrey at 6pm on Monday.
Monterrey to Austin buses will begin running on Saturday night/Sunday morning at 2am and will follow the same 6am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm, 10pm, and 2am schedule, with the last bus headed from Monterrey to Austin at 6pm on Tuesday.
The trip takes approximately 6 1/2 hours, but we are accounting for an 8 hour trip time in case of delays.
There are also several commercial companies who offer the same route from Austin to Monterrey every hour or so for around $48 each way.
Turimex Internacional - 512.707.1115
Autobuses Americanos - 512.928.9237
Autobuses San Luís - 512.320.0104
Autobuses Conejo - 512.912.8282
Autobuses García's - 512.326.5443
Transportes Matehuala - 512.236.1219
Transportes Rodríguez - 512.481.0309
Transportes Tejanos - 512.444.5454
Transportes Pegasos - 512.441.7575
Transportes San Miguel - 512.926.1709
Autobuses Adame - 512.851.2909
Tornado Bus - 512.754.2155
Greyhound - 512.458.4463
We make no claims about quality of these private companies' service, though they are by-and-large reputable, professional companies. In many cases it is cheaper and quicker to take a bus to the border at Laredo / Nuevo Laredo, then walk across the border, take a taxi to the Nuevo Laredo bus station, and buy a ticket onward to Monterrey there.
| DRIVING YOUR OWN CAR INTO MEXICO |
Driving into Mexico is not difficult, however you must register your vehicle with Mexican authorities at the border for a cost of roughly $70 per vehicle.
It is prudent (though not legally required) to purchase vehicle insurance that covers your car in Mexico. This will typically cost about $30 for the week. Short term Mexican vehicle insurance policies are widely available on the internet.
In the last 10 years, the Mexican federal government has embarked on a freeway-building spree including toll highways directly from the border crossing at Laredo to Monterrey. You will find it's a modern and efficient drive, with gas stations and 7-Elevens nearly every mile.
| A SIMPLE BORDER CROSSING |
Crossing the border into Mexico is very simple. All you need is a valid passport or an official passport card. Passport books & cards currently take 4-6 weeks to order and process if not expedited. Books are $100, cards are $45 (only for entry to Mexico/Canada and can only used when traveling by land). No Visas are necessary.
You can expedite your passport application for an extra $60 plus overnight shipping costs, in which case you will have your passport in two to three weeks.
U.S. citizens can apply for a passport book or card here: http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/79955.pdf
You can renew an existing passport here: http://travel.state.gov/passport/forms/ds82/ds82_843.html
You can also apply for a passport or renew an existing passport at any USPS Post Office.
| MONTERREY: MODERN CITY OF 4 MILLION PEOPLE, WEALTHIEST & SAFEST CITY IN MEXICO |
Monterrey is a safe, clean city of 4 million people, and is by far the wealthiest and most modern city in Mexico.
http://medicaltourismmag.com/issue-detail.php?item=69&issue=4
Monterrey has a two line subway system, a modern airport, great hospitals, and modern industry, culture, architecture, and government, as well as the most renowned university in Mexico. Monterrey was ranked as “The Most Secure City in Latin America” by América Economía magazine.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monterrey
Mercer Quality of Life Survey 2008 mentions Monterrey, to say that Monterrey has lower crime index than New York City. New York is used as a baseline of 100 for the Mercer Personal Safety Index: “Elsewhere in the region, Santo Domingo has the highest ranking at 92 followed by Panama City (96) and Monterrey (99). Bogota (207) in Colombia has the lowest levels of personal safety.”
http://www.finfacts.ie/qualityoflife.htm
Monterrey has dramatically fewer instances of kidnappings than, as well as has much lower levels of non-international drug trade related violence than, other Latin American cities.
http://www.osac.gov/Reports/report.cfm?contentID=62158
| TOWARDS CORRECTING U.S. IGNORANCE ABOUT MEXICO |
The conventional wisdom on the U.S.A. side of the border is that Mexico is a third world country, with hopeless problems of crime, chronic lack of education, and crooked government. Anyone who has traveled extensively within Mexico, or has looked at actual statistics, knows these perceptions of Mexico are deeply incorrect. Mexico is a modern, growing nation with industry, free press, modern art, world class universities, and rich culture and history. MtyMx aims to encourage U.S. citizens to travel to Mexico and see Mexico for themselves.
| SPOTLIGHTING U.S. TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS ON MEXICANS |
The U.S. has strict visa restrictions in place to curtail Mexican immigration. To obtain a tourist visa for travel to the United States, a Mexican must provide proof that they have held a job consistently for 5 years, show that they own substantial property, and show they have maintained a stable address for 5 years. Many creative people in the U.S. or Mexico would find these requirements hard to meet. The policy effectively locks out all but the most established Mexican bands and artists from touring or showing their work in the United States - particularly playing or attending SxSW. MtyMx seeks to reverse this disenfranchisement, by bringing the best of SxSW across the border to play with bands and in front of audiences that have been effectively shut out of the party. There is valid, informed modern art and intellectual music being made in Mexico and Mexican artists deserve their place as part of the international conversation.
| GUESTS CURATORS RHINOCEROPOLIS |
The MtyMx Festival is also proud to include guest curators Rhinoceropolis curating a portion of the festival. Rhinoceropolis is one of the purest examples of a progressively curated DIY punk space. The space is based in Denver, Colorado and hosts local art shows and promotes them with the same fervor as it does the musical acts that pass through its doors. Whatever you’re looking for, you’re guaranteed to see — or hear — something way outside the mainstream any time you visit. Noise artists, psych folk, avant-garde rock and anything else that is just too weird to fit into the universe of more conventionally minded folk finds a home at Rhinoceropolis. They have been instrumental in booking early “before they were famous” shows as well as present day major tours for acts such as Dan Deacon, HEALTH, High Places, Pictureplane and many others.
| SITE |– http://www.myspace.com/rhinoceropolis
| YO GARAGE: DIY PARTNERS IN MONTERREY |
The promoting duo, Ricardo Ramírez Franco and Leila Ibarra Castro, showcase independent bands in the city of Monterrey. They have their own space called Garage where they put on shows for local acts as well as bands from other states and countries. They collaborate with the bands on recordings, tours and shows in other spaces, also provided in the DIY spirit.
| SITES |– http://enelgarage.com | http://yogarage.mx
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| BANDS PLAYING THE FESTIVAL |
| Aa | aka BIG A little a
Multi-percussionist choreographed noise & flashing lights & sweat & (most of the time) stationary marching band explosion. Increasingly complex an musical. "Aa (BIG A little a) a very beautiful way of shifting its center in unexpected ways. A fat tableau of the kindsa sounds that young people should be making and enjoying in bistros from here to Kalamazoo. Here they club out bite-sized hunks of neo-no, new-wave-electro-murk, disco-noise readymades, French duck calls and a buncha other stuff. And it sounds quite pleasing!" - Thurston Moore, Arthur Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/alittlea
| ACID MOTHERS TEMPLE |
"A “freak-out group for the 21st century,” Japan’s Acid Mothers Temple and the Melting Paraiso U.F.O. were founded in 1996 by members of the Acid Mothers Temple music-art commune. AMT pays wicked tribute to the halcyon days of the late-’60s to mid-’70s English/American progressive and avant-rock bands and new-music pioneers, including but not limited to Sun Ra, Gong, Hendrix, Floyd and Soft Machine. The band’s various lineup transmutations are pretty hard to keep track of, though the faithful know that the live event will be a guaranteed major mind meltdown." - L.A. Weekly
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/acidmotherstemple
| ADVENTURE |
"If Game Boy made soul music, it would sound like this. Both rinky dink and rapturously melodic, Adventure programs dense layers of synth lines and shifting beats that fall together like sonic Tetris. As addictive as a good video game - and you can't lose." - Spin
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/adventuresound
| AIR WAVES |
Air Waves is the artistic vision of Nichole Schneit, an excellent songwriter with a classic Moe Tucker voice, from Brooklyn. "Fronted by vocalist/guitarist, Nicole Schneit, Air Waves is another band that belongs on your iPod playlists during the summer, while riding your bike on a sunny day, or even when you’re unwinding from a busy day. Schneit’s storytelling is relayed through simple lyrics that come from a pure heart on top of organic chords wrapped in peaceful drumming. Schneit still writes about things such as love, but there’s a straight-to-the-point factor in her vocals that feeds the listener intellectual clarity in the midst of her charm." - Beat Crave
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/airwavesmusic
| ALEXICO |
Alexico is part of the exciting new wave of acts from Monterrey Mexico, probably the most fast-tuned out of all. Songs easily jump out of Aléxico's strange and spontaneous sense of humor. Although he has put out free to download albums, his work is best followed song by song. Almost every new one is a side step with brand new possibilities, and there are new songs on almost every live show. He will play wherever he is invited and quite frequently for fundraising events. He would even lend you some money if you need some. Using an array of electronic devices, guitars, synths and vocal effects, his shows are always thematic and really fun to watch.
| MYSPACE / MP3 |-- http://myspace.com/alexico
| ANAMANAGUCHI |
"New York's Anamanaguchi finally makes their debut with the driving and dynamic Power Supply. The fully-packed release shows a range of feelings from "putting the final blast into a robot boss" to some more heartfelt tunes — all with hyper-melodic, electric powerpop flavor. It is recommended that you sing along with the squarewaves." 8 Bit Peoples "We name Anamanaguchi the default leader in the onslaught of 8-bit bands that seemed to multiply and expand like extra lives in 2009." - Impose
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/anamanaguchi
| ANDREW W.K. |
"Andrew W.K. is the Motor City madman who has arrived to preach the true faith of heavy-metal dementia. He puts the "mess" in "Messiah," raising arena-rock cliches from the dead and amping them up until they scream for mercy." - Rolling Stone
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/andrewwk
| ANTOINE REVERB |
" Think of Broken Social Scene inviting the guys from Belle and Sebastian to work on an old bunch of songs that Billy Corgan wrote with Brian Wilson… and then keep in mind that Antoine Reverb sounds exactly like none of the above. They sound like kids of the age of global inspiration. A fine example of Guadalajara’s interesting scene." - Club Fonograma
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/antoinereverb
| BAM BAM |
"The four players of Bam Bam--Mou (guitar), Luxor (percussions), Meme (drums) and Leo (bass)-create one of Monterrey, Mexico's most interesting and enjoyable proposals. Sharing vocal duties, the quartet's blend of indie-pop and indie-rock, infused with a lo-fi esque texture throughout, give Bam Bam a similar taste to that of the Little Ones, the Shins or the New Pornographers." - Lost At Sea
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/dalebambam
| BANJO OR FREAKOUT |
"Alessio Natalizia (aka Banjo or Freakout)... has released several singles to mass acclaim, including the most recent Upside Down EP, which is a masterclass in claustrophobic shoe-gaze joy. It’s on the live stage that Banjo or Freakout really take sail though. Allowing the layered sounds to break free of their laptop based shackles – Alessio carves out massive curve balls of noise, helped only by an additional drummer and countless effects pedals and synths. Banjo Or Freakout really are one of the few essential live acts on the UK circuit at the moment." - The Line Of Best Fit
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/banjoorfreakout
| BATHS |
"The drowsy vocals and shimmery guitar on top of a simple tom and snare drum set up sounded like the 13th Floor Elevators on (even more) codine and it was definity “slowly bob your head in time with beat while attempting to not spill your drink on everyone’s shoes” music..." - Do The Feedback
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/baths
| BEACH FOSSILS |
Brooklyn band, on Woodsist records. Reminds me of late 80's jangle-core Brit stuff. Kind of ala Felt, or even Vomit Launch. Pretty terrific. "catchy, interweaving guitar lines complemented by echoing vocals and lo-fi drums." - DMATH "I came across the music of Beach Fossils, a one man band consisting of Dustin Payseur, which I’ve been listening to a lot lately. His music falls into that new surf, feedback slot that I really can’t describe very well. But it sounds really timeless, like something that might have been written 50 years ago." - KITSUNE NOIR
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/beachfossils
| THE BEETS |
"The Beets play sunny, effortless 60s garage rock. They're a new band and it's certainly pretty simple, direct stuff, but theirs is a sound that, for the moment, requires no embellishment to be purely enjoyable. I challenge you not to get their lo-fi pop stuck in your head after a few listens. the Beets hail from Jackson Heights, Queens" - Impose Magazine. Multicultural Queens weird dudes who channel the Velvets, awesomely.
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/thebeetsbeat
| BEST FWENDS |
Totally retarded goofballs from Fort Worth. These doods get the dance party going. Good pop songs, good beats, funny funny stage antics. "Two pubescent Beastie Boys let loose in Toys R Us with some RRRRRROCK guitars, some choice hip hop beats and other random noises thrown in for good measure doesn't quite come close enough, nor do it justice..but it'll do." - Covert Curiosity
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://www.myspace.com/bestfwends
| BIG TROUBLES |
"Already weighing down eager hearts in the RIGHT PLACES, BIG TROUBLES sing the saddest songs and the most real too – fog descending on brilliant thoughts, healing hope always simmering under even the most sallow skin’s surface. The nerve-wracked and cracked blues stranded standard of “Greydayz” sees an end-days Elvis figure sequestered away in disgraceland but still kind of the coolest – its huge, toilet-bowl warped Fifties guitar twang conjured in a meat-sweating hamburger hallucination that hauntingly preserves all our hero’s glory days, all that unfading adulation and unbeatable youth. kind of heartbreaking, but kind of comforting and perfect too, just as it should be." - Transparent
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/inbigtroubles
| BITTERS |
"The Bitters are a Toronto duo featuring Ben Cook of Fucked Up and Aerin Fogel. They've got a single and an EP on Captured Tracks, the latter of which I dig (haven't heard the single yet). While definitely on the "low" end of the "fi" scale, Bitters are different from anything else on Captured Tracks with an early-'60s rock n' roll vibe (or early '80s West Coast punk), and Ben and Aerin's harmonies front-and-center." - http://BROOKLYNVEGAN.COM
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/bittersband
| CAMPFIRES |
"...The songs are short, sweet-bitter postcards from bored boys summer camp, somewhere in middle America where you spend most nights loitering in your cabin smoking weed with the peeling Jim Morrison poster and faded The Who banner and your buddies who can all vaguely play some instrument or the other. My prediction: expect Campfires to spread like a negligently started forest wildfire in the dry-leaf bountiful world that is lo-fi garage..." - Don't Die Wondering
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/campfiresmusic
| CARROTS |
"Self-described as "60s girl groups in love," Austin-based band the Carrots features ex-members of Finally Punk. Live, the band boasts 8 members, both boys and girls. "Luckily for them (and us), they do an amazing job of capturing the spirit and essence of the original girl-groups of the '50's and early '60's, like Martha and the Vandellas, The Ronettes, The Crystals, and The Shirelles, often covering some of these bands' hits in their live set (which I hear is great)." - Gorilla vs. Bear
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/thecarrots
| CHIKITA VIOLENTA |
"Chikita Violenta is a Mexican indie rock band from Mexico City. They released their first record for a major label in the beginning of 2007; The Stars and Suns Sessions was produced by David Newfeld (Broken Social Scene, Apostle of Hustle, Super Furry Animals, Los Campesinos!) and was recorded in Toronto's Stars & Suns studio." - NME
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/chikitaviolentaband
| CHINESE STARS |
On Skin Graft Recs, Craig & Eric from Arab on Radar, Richard from Six Finger Satellite, & a fella named Paul crank out the "choppy guitars, bass-drum freakouts, and the distorted-beyond-repair vocals that are well embedded in the Providence indie music scene." - OhMyRockness.com
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/thechinesestars
| COASTING |
"With nary a demo nor a firm home base (half the duo hibernates in New Zealand for the winter while the other stays in Brooklyn), the girl guitar/drums duo spins melodic yarns somewhere between the Swirlies and the current lo-fi garage continuum, Coasting already blew us away off a few practice tapes and handful of live shows." - Impose
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/brooklyncoasting
| THE COATHANGERS |
Straight outta Atlanta, four ladies playing fast punk tunes, armed with attitude and a sly sense of humor. Silly song titles, subversive undertones, and undeniably infectious. "…simple punk-rock songs that are fun, catchy, vulgar and perverse… simply it's awesome." – The Yellow Stereo
| MYSPACE/MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/fuckthecoathangers
| CLOUD NOTHINGS |
In two months, Cloud Nothings has created quite a storm of buzziness, with accolades from Fader, Stereogum, Prefix, and more all emanating from two lofi tracks released by a mysterious 18 year old from Cleveland. "fucking great stuff from Cloud Nothings... Dylan is 18, comes from Cleveland, OH, and after chucking out records for the last whenever as Cat Killer, decided to really get his shit in gear and record two of the best pop songs to pass these ears all year. His songs evoke the slacker-charm usually associated with staying in bed all day, 'cept instead of playing shit computer games like the rest of us, Dylan's clearly spent his time wisely, eating his body-weight in ecstasy and drinking his mother's NyQuil. He has a cassette out soon on Bridgetown Records" - http://fuckinginthestreet.blogspot.com
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://www.myspace.com/cloudnothings
| DAN DEACON |
"Absurdist composer and electronic musician performs with his "messy table of fancy electronic whosit and howsthat." Dan's music strives to take contemporary experimental composition and electronic music out of the circle of the esoteric intellectual gangs and hipster communities and place it into the more informal "fun time." His performance and compositional techniques shows strong influences from the Fluxus Movement, Spiderman, Absurdism, and the current movement in underground rock. While maintaining a constant performance and tour schedule he has spent most of his time working on pieces for brass ensemble, string quartet, solo cello, casio song workings, solo study and his study in mid and high frequency sine waves." - BALTIMORE CITY PAPER . Listen to Dan again, for the first time.
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/dandeacon
| RAD VIDEO |-- http://youtube.com/watch?v=ouE1Y6bK90s
| DAS RACIST |
"Das Racist is a weed edge/Hare Krishna hard-core/art rap/freak folk music duo based in Brooklyn, NY, comprised of Queens-born Himanshu Kumar and San Francisco-born Victor Vazquez. The two met at Weslayan, where Victor was Himanshu's Resident Advisor in a "Students of Color for Social Justice" themed freshman year dormitory." - Flavorpill
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/dasracist
| dd/mm/yyyy |
Proggy yet sing-along minor key smart punk from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. "Featuring synthesizer, electric guitar, drums and loud vocals, many could categorize this song as punk. However, DD/MM/YYYY categorize themselves on their MySpace as “rock/ progressive/ new wave,” leaving the overused and misunderstood “punk” classification M.I.A. While “Batman Guitar Clock” may have a sound reminiscent of punk, DD/MM/YYYY is as versatile as a well made spork, varying in sound from song-to-song." - Imprint Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/ddmmyyyy
| EXPLODE INTO COLORS |
"The band is a trio of ladies dead set on conjuring your ghastly spirit with subversive galloping grooves, neo-primitive drum roundhouses, and banshee-friendly, trance-like vocal calisthenics." - Seattle Subsonic
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/explodeintocolors
| FERGUS & GERONIMO |
"Instantly and almost infectiously catchy vocal parts are delivered with an unmistakable enthusiasm and confidence as they dance on top of simple, jangly guitars and bright keyboards, all with a rough around the edges lo-fi charm" - We Shot J.R.
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/fergusgeronimo
| FLUFFY LUMBERS |
"I think the shift from beach party weather to the autumnal chill likely falling on his home state New Jersey will be perfectly suited to Franklin's penchant for the nostalgic bittersweet, especially when these hazy guitar lines echo like half-remembered punk pop hitz heard while cruising yr suburban neighorhood, sadder on reflection with all their lost and mixed associations." - Rose Quartz
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/fluffylumbers
| FUCKED UP |
"Fucked Up formed in Toronto in 2002, high-school friends influenced by first- and second-wave hardcore bands like Minor Threat and NOFX. It was instantly apparent that they were not carbon-copy punks. Their first 7" was entitled No Pasarán after an anti-fascist slogan from the Spanish Civil War. It was also ferociously melodic and inventive, setting the scene for a string of 25 singles over the next four years that combined political commentary with incredible musicianship and a sense of theater. - Matador
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/epicsinminutes
| GRANT HART |
"Grant Hart, former drummer/singer/songwriter of the ever-important punk group Hüsker Dü, has since released five solo efforts and two LPs with his former band Nova Mob in the past 22 years." - MN Daily
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://granthart.com
| HEALTH |
"HEALTH have found their niche in the scene with artfully crafted noise and raw synth, haunting monotone vocals, and drum skills that are borderline insane. Their live show is explosive, energetic, and exudes pandemonium without actually resorting to full on chaos." - Rock Insider
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/healthmusic
| HIGH PLACES |
"High Places’s musicianship sits at the interface between electronic and traditional modes. The songs as a whole come off as electronic, but it’s an illusion. The mixture of electronic and natural instrumentation is continued on stage, where High Places use both pre-recorded tracks and live percussion and processing to recreate their sound. Making sequenced music work live is still evolving, but they show the way of things to come." - Dusted Magainze
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/hellohighplaces
| HUNX AND HIS PUNX |
"Some might recognize Seth Bogart as the keyboard player and singer from the hamburger-loving electro-pop band Gravy Train!!!!. Now he's also the mustachioed, leather-jacket-wearing lead singer of bubblegummy, homorrific garage band Hunx and His Punx...[think] if someone put equal parts Ramones, John Waters, and the Ronettes in a blender with some ice and made hot-pink frozen daiquiris to serve at one of those big gay pool parties where everyone looks like early-'80s-era Freddie Mercury in a bathing suit." - The Stranger
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/hunxsolo
| INDIAN JEWELRY |
"Indian Jewelry do not make dark music to trip to; they make dark music to pack with you on spirit quests. Taking the bad acid freak-out aesthetic of fellow Texans the Butthole Surfers, and cutting it in with the droning electronic menace of Suicide, Indian Jewelry are the new robot shamans, projecting nano-bot visions on expansive wastelands and conjuring snippets of digitized desolation." - Stylus Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/indianjewelry
| JOSEPHINE AND THE MOUSEPEOPLE |
"This duo uses samples of a full range of instruments but also plays a wide range of live instruments, including electric and acoustic guitars, keyboards and drums. The result was truly unique pop music that was as exhilaratingly danceable as it was infused a spirit to kindle the imagination. Inevitable comparisons to Bright Eyes will occur but this band is in a class of its own." - Denver Westword
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/josephineandthemousepeople
| JOVENES Y SEXYS |
"Jóvenes y Sexys is a young and sexy lofi-folk-pop-duo from Mexico/Venezuela and their sweet melodies keep buzzing around my head for quite some time now. Somewhere between the simple sound of an acoustic guitar and some gentle handclapping, Jóvenes y Sexys placed lovely melodies, that will get stuck in your ears. To complete their little universe of lofi-pop, they added some fancy atmospheric sounds – sweet and soothing." - Phlow Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/jovenesysexys
| KIT |
"K.I.T are a super-melodic experimental rock band from Oakland, California. They play very fast, short, defiant songs that fuck with the ideas of pop music. Maybe they'll start off playing a song straight - sweetness and light abounds - but before you know it everything gets flipped on its head and chased into chaotic abstraction. K.I.T songs can typically embrace hardcore rush, pop verse, jagged noise and cheer rally, all within the same moment - nothing but raw positivity and instinctive songwriting holding it all together." - Upset the Rhythm
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/vvkitvv
| LAWRENCE ARABIA |
"Lawrence Arabia, the alter-ego of New Zealand's James Milne, returns with his second full-length LP after stints in Okkervil River, The Brunettes and The Ruby Suns. Low-slung Americana and indie-pop hooks form the core to Milne's distantly-voiced dry wit on topics including schoolboy crushes and drunken debauchery. His wit is also markedly tongue- in-cheek, adding pinpointed high octaves to emphasis the emotion. There is the feel of an honest, earnest lyrical jaunt at play here, against the lounge-set vocals and wriggly melodies." - BBC
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/lawrencearabia
| LÁZARO VALIENTE |
"The music itself, whether coming through two cell phones apparently calling each other, amidst the humming hair-dryer-pendulum, or being played completely in reverse at the conclusion, always has this comforting acoustic guitar and voice that seem to emerge from the radio noises and dreamy xylophone. It's like struggling with the radio dial, trying to find that pretty little crackling song that is barely coming through, while you drive across some scorched uninhabitable stretch. It's hard to characterize, but it's enjoyable to allow the extreme shifts to seed one another. The hated alarm clock has become one of my favorite sounds - at the right time it brings such a sweet sense of order and rhythm." - Sitcom Serf
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/lazarovaliente
| LEMONADE |
"This trio's tracks hit the dancefloor from all angles, filtering a worldly rhythmic sense and digital peripherals through their Brooklyn-based lens. Front and center are Alex Pasternak's ferocious drumset workouts and Callan Clendenin's cutting vocals, defined by a bar-by-bar attention to tonal texture and left-field electronic filigree."- Stereogum
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/bananasandecstasy
| LIARS |
Thank heaven for Liars. They are the perfect prescription to these drab uniform times. At long last a band willing to prod and poke the notion of indie from its self satisfied slumber. To grasp the notion that you can fracture the structure, be restless, be artful, be wilful and create something as awe inspiring as this. The bar has been raised, please take note. - Music OMH
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/liarsliarsliars
| LITURGY |
"The best metal band in New York for the better part of 2009, and perhaps the only one on the eastern seaboard with the claim to DIY Black Metal." - Impose
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/liturgynybm
| LOS FANCY FREE |
Los Fancy Free are a psychedelic 4-piece from Mexico City with a unique kind of reputation. Their energetic live shows equally draw a bunch of kids to a DIY space and thousands to a ridiculously big festival. They are highly involved with the Mexican independent scene as producers through their own label, Silicon Carne, as well as other record labels. Around Los Fancy Free exists a bunch of weird and exciting side projects such as Evil Hippie, Pan Blanco and Las Comadrejas.
| MYSPACE / MP3 | -- http://myspace.com/losfancyfree
| LOS LLAMARADA |
A 4-piece from Monterrey, MX. "The music is Stooges-crude and rendered free of distractions, like high-midrange frequencies. It evokes an eavesdrop upon a found practice space transmission, a shambolic rock and roll 'happening' maybe meant to have been purely ephemeral and undocumented. " - Dusted Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/losllamarada
| LOS MARGARITOS |
Los Margaritos are one of the fixtures of the Monterrey punk scene. Filled with images, both visual and lyrical, of melted creatures, sick heroes and weird teenage habits, Los Margaritos shows have lasted up to 3 non-stop hours, with kids singing along the entire time. Its the best secret kept in Monterrey and some think all of México. Their new album "Melcochambre Sonoro" is free to download but you have to get your hands on The Amazing Herviononos audio-comic book (illustrated by Edwin, the singer) that comes along with it. Check out the track "El mundo ya no sabe rockear" (the world no longer knows how to rock) and let Los Margaritos teach you.
| MYSPACE / MP3 | -- http://myspace.com/losmargaritos
| LOS PLANETAS |
"Los Planetas is one of those bands who seem like they’re kind of just flimsily strumming their instruments, wearing plaid, looking bored, when in fact they’re weaving hooky melodies in and out of droning vocals, creating solid atmospheric rock that’s perfect for mindless tasks and long road trips." - Idolator
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/losplanetas
| LUCKY DRAGONS |
From Los Angeles, "Luke Fischbeck creates beautiful organic noise and intelligent electronica - and mind blowing projected visuals - all created utilizing a laptop and gorgeous homemade triggers to affect lush loops and harmonic sequences, always different and determined by audience participation and Fischbeck's hypnotic dancing. "Intriguing 'organic glitchcore' - a ragbag of cut and paste, sing-song melodies, found sounds, acoustic folkiness - reminds me of various artists without really sounding like them: Alejandra and Aeron, Fennesz's Endless Summer spring to mind most readily - excellent stuff" - Boa Melodybar . "a line between the handmade and the distanced digital... ...a successful forging of the personal detritus, the mic-ed moments between moments" - AllMusicGuide.com . "Lucky Dragons craft some of the most humane, confused, and staggeringly beautiful Lap-pap I've ever had the pleasure of hearing." - Zac Pennington, PortlandMercury.com
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/luckydragons
| MALE BONDING |
The latest addition to the Sub Pop family... "reverb and cowbell soaked violently sprawled new york inspired new wave pop. Think Talking Heads recorded in their first year of formation on a 4 track meets a more obviously pop version of Sonic Youth." - RCRD LBL
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/malebonding
| THE MANTLES |
"The Mantles' debut is the come-from-behind outsider, the secret star, the crushworthy keeper. You'll know it when you hear it, from the one-two-three punch of the first trio of tracks: the Byrds-y jangle of "Disappearing Act"; the churning propulsive energy of "What We Do Matters"; and maybe most of all, the brooding balladry of "Look Away," a now-I-see-you-now-I-don't relationship ode which possesses a kind of offhand melodic and vocal strength that sounds easy to achieve, but obviously isn't, because so few ever manage to do it." - SF Guardian
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/mantles
| MNDR |
sampler electronica with female vocals. the brainchild of NY based knob twiddler Amanda Warner.
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/mndrtronica
| NEON INDIAN |
"Twenty-one year-old Mexico-born, Texas-raised Alan Palomo is a restless fellow. Neon Indian is his third new music identity in two years, following the short-lived Ghosthunter and the ongoing VEGA. A gauzy combination of Buggles-style 1980s pop, video game soundtracks, and cheeseball elevator music, Neon Indian songs like "Deadbeat Summer" "Should Have Taken Acid With You" and are effervescent, goofy, and achingly nostalgic. Kind of like MGMT on a ramen budget-- and with less face paint." - Pitchfork
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/neonindian
| NO AGE |
"No Age is Randy Randall and Dean Spunt - two heavyweights from the LA punk / skate / art underworld, who previously performed as two thirds of that punked DIY machine, WIVES. Formed in December 2005, following an incendiary final WIVES tour - it ended with a trip to A&E in Islington, London - Randy and Dean bring the world back to their room with a different approach for their new band. A crashing collision of sweetly shouted ditties, ecstatic crunch feedback and violent bouts of percussion, the No Age sound is abound with pop songs fighting to break through a mist of white fuzz... No Age have a rude energy, but the music is emptier than with WIVES and more mysterious... Mr Spunt sang and smacked the rim of his snare drum, while Mr Randall picked out some broken chords. Then it shifted: Mr Randall tapped an octave pedal, transforming his spidery guitar line into a burly, propulsive bass line." - NY Times
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/nonoage
| PICTUREPLANE |
"Pictureplane, aka 24-year old Denver-via-Santa Fe multi-media maker Travis Egedy, popped up on some radars this past April via his remix of HEALTH's "Die Slow." Before that, he remixed Crystal Castles, collaborated with hometown New Mexico bud Zach Condon, and self-released his debut full-length Turquoise Trail, which Lovepump reissued digitally in March. Now the same label's tackling his excellent sophomore collection Dark Rift. If may very well be the dance record of the summer for people who aren't used to dancing: Egedy's expansive mix of '90s house, dreamy '80s synth-pop, poppy darkwave, tripped and colorful Black Dice-style noise, bottomed-out hiss, weirdo Sublime Frequencies drum circles, and a surprisingly ready-for-the-club semi-sheen creates endlessly interesting soundscapes. He has art-school style, yes, but the guy also writes well-crated hooks with actual emotional pull." - http://STEREOGUM.COM
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/pictureplane
| POCAHAUNTED |
"Mystic Los Angelino's making post-modern, lo-fi psychedelic drone. Perfect for end-of-the-day subway rides, food comas, and staring at the wall." - Chocolate Bobka
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://www.myspace.com/pocahaunted
| QUIERO CLUB |
Quiero Club sounds like decades of Spanish pop from all over Latin América through the minds of five creative youngsters. While they can check fashion designer, producer, and record label owner off their list of day jobs, they still find a way to take what's good about pop music and create songs with timeless hooks, thoughtful arrangements and powerful beats. Their second album Nueva América was recently released in the U.S. through Nacional Records.
| MYSPACE / MP3 | -- http://myspace.com/quieroclub
| RATAS DEL VATICANO |
"Ratas Del Vaticano ("Rats of the Vatican") are a quartet hailing from Monterrey, Mexico, who assail ears with a most excellent assemblage of punk spew that can best be pitched as "KBD-like." Originally formed as a drunken joke (where have you heard that one before?), Ratas Del Vaticano quickly realized they were onto something. And, man, can these guys slice 'n' dice! Guttural, sneering, cynical, sarcastic, Ratas Del Vaticano dish it out in buckets like rancid pozole." - Slitbreeze. All their records have been released by US independent labels. "Mocosos Patéticos" (Siltbreeze 2009), "Chido EP (Volar, 2009) and the soon to be released "Tiempos de Austeridad" on HSBP-2X, followed by another EP with Batshit and a tape release with Full Beans.
| MYSPACE / MP3 | -- http://myspace.com/ratasdelvaticano
| LABEL SITE |-- http://siltbreeze.com
| RINGO DEATHSTARR |
"With a blustery, lysergic guitar squall that evokes both the circular scuzz of Spacemen 3 and the primal noise of early Jesus And Mary Chain, the sound of Ringo Deathstarr is often pegged as some part of a sonic revivalism. - Magnet Magazine. "...at once massive and soft under a wash of warped guitar – the kind that fills the brain with electric pleasure. Live, they’re not such delicate flowers. The group likes short sets, and when playing Emo’s last December, Frazier ended the show tangled up in drums." - Austin Chronicle
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/ringodeathstarr
| SALEM |
"On a series of breathy, claustrophobic EPs and singles beginning in 2008, Salem — the trio of John Holland, Heather Marlatt and Jack Donoghue — has been honing an oozy, cold style; a pastiche of several strains of pessimistic music: there are hints of noise-rock and shoegaze, as well as the stamp of the Houston rap pioneer D.J. Screw, who slowed records down until they became gummy and desperate." - NY Times
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/s4lem
| THE SANDWITCHES |
"Their approach is eclectic in style but somehow ends up feeling like one big picture once you back up just a few feet. The dissolution of the American dream from the Shagri-Las to Box Car folk, dust bowl Americana to smoldering 70's arena ballad femme fatales; its all here and nothing is spared [in] The Sandwitches delicate touch. In a blur of straw and taffeta, the band works their way through an album's worth of free swinging and tight woven pop that leaves a cool shiver down your spine, assuring you something special just wafted through your life." - Raven Sings The Blues
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/thesandwitches
| SMALL BLACK |
"Brooklyn's Small Black have a little bit of the dark wave moodiness that's been seeping up out of New York and a whole lot of the no-fi, bedroom cloud-punk that's been creeping up out of practically everywhere." - Village Voice
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/smallblacksounds
| SO COW |
"Brian Kelly sings under the moniker of So Cow. He turns out songs that bristle with a charming, jittery angst – concise, yet twee at times. Not the check-out-my-cutesy-Belle & Sebastian-plush-dolls twee, but more of the check-out-my-Television Personalities-vinyl-and-the-cigarette-burn-in-my-cardigan ilk." - The Tripwire
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/socow
| SOHO RIOTS |
"Wow, pretty amazing stuff. It probably shouldn't come as a big surprise that this band is producing such great psychedelic music in Mexico (of all places), if one recalls, that Mexico has in fact quite a tradition of great psychedelic bands, that already played in the late 60's and early 70's" - Homemade Lo-fi Psych
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/sohoriots
| SUN ARAW |
" Like swampy rituals played out on a scuzzy factory floor, there’s a determined combination of the primitive and the modern, with tambourine rhythms beneath waves of fuzzed-out guitar, bluesy jams coated in a foggy haze, and clattering rhythms buoying deliriously delayed vocal chants." - Dusted Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/sunaraw
| TALK NORMAL |
"There is an evolving history of bizarreness translated into brutal, arty music and New York duo Talk Normal has kept an ear on this brand of sludgy dirge...It’s completely punishing in the simplest way, like they mic’d each other in a fight with baseball bats where their bones never break so they just keep swinging." - The Fader
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/talknormaltalknormal
| TANLINES |
Amazing electronic duo by 2 guys who used to be in Professor Murder and Don Caballero. "Tanlines belong to that happy breed of musicians that revels in the rank absurdities thrown up by postmodern culture and its attendant dogs of unreality. Neither the mournful ushers of a world without meaning nor its ironic celebrants, the Brooklyn duo instead look to embody the spirit of their musical age via their questing, upbeat pop which sounds a bit like a wet-behind-the ears DFA on a globe-trotting youth hostel jaunt. Read what you will into Tanlines' zesty dance-pop goodness, but you'll write them off at your own peril." - thequietus.com
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/tanlinestheband
| TEARIST |
"Bleeding over the lines of performance art and proto industrial dark wave while sounding totally fresh, unique, and mysterious, Tearist are in a world of their own creation. Its not goth, its not industrial, its just (white) magic. Probably my favorite band out right now. What up Los Angeles!" - Pictureplane (via Pitchfork)
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/teariststst
| TEENAGE COOL KIDS |
"Built to Spill – The Jammy Parts + More Hooks = Teenage Cool Kids" - Sound As Language
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/teenagecoolkids
| TEENGIRL FANTASY |
Logan and Nick are two young guys attending Oberlin College (perhaps taking a little time off), together they make drum machine and sampler-heavy dance music that steals as much from the underground noise scene as from the dance music world. Teengirl Fantasy smash those influences to make transcendently catchy adrenaline anthems that get everyone dancing. "Oberlin, Ohio duo Teengirl Fantasy have been pouring all the most exhilarating bits of those raucous past dance anthems, complete with chopped vocal snips, into their own unique sort of bedroom club music. A huge beach party, where the boombox got waterlogged and now skips and sizzles and is mysteriously picking up four stations at once, and no one cares at all" - Impose
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/teengirlfantasy
| TEETH MOUNTAIN |
imagining the sort of freakfolk experimental tribal percussion that nominally defines Baltimore's Teeth Mountain and "you may expect a sprawling hodgepodge of free sounds complete with weird freakouts, chiming bells, and the smell of burning incense from that description. However, that’s not the case with Teeth Mountain. What the eight-piece outfit does, and they do it incredibly well, is create a controlled mayhem of weighty neo-tribal trance music, packed with organic organ tones, distorted cello drones, and a skilled singing saw. Part Indian, part African, part Balkan, and part Baltimore, Teeth Mountain will enthrall you in a rhythmic musical spell." Friction NYC
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/teethmountain
| TELEPATHE |
"Brooklyn banshees with a brand new beat, Telepathe stand out from the NY district’s vacuum of avant-garde. Though the same stifling pursuits of local noiseniks Gang Gang Dance and Effi Briest remain, a realised pop sensibility now stands to the fore, as harmonies and chants call out with blood-curdling brilliance against their lapping tape loops and darting hooks." - DROWNEDINSOUND.COM
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/telepathe
| THEE OH SEES |
Reverby, rockabilly-ish, rad psych folk garage from John Dwyer, formerly of Coachwhips and Pink & Brown, and other SF compatriots. "This is pretty fucking luxurious, all chocolate guitars and tambourines and heavenly vibes, but it’s still tight as a drum: listen out for those harmonies and perfect snare rolls which contribute to the general feeling that you’re in masterful hands. Like, Thee Oh Sees know how to pamper, way more lo-fi Barry White than drunk punk fuck." - Rose Quartz
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/ohsees
| TORO Y MOI |
"Toro Y Moi is the brainchild of South Carolinan Chaz Bundick, a 23-year-old singer, songwriter, producer, multi-instrumentalist whiz-kid and graphic design graduate...expect lots of funk bass and fuzztone indie, and plenty of somnolent keyboard pop with a budget-lavish sheen, wafting beautifully but hazily out of your speakers like a weak radio transmission from a parallel universe where Kevin Shields was executive producer of Pet Sounds ..." - The Guardian
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/toroymoi
| TOTAL ABUSE |
"Where Total Abuse is most gloriously ugly is at the polar opposites of the spectrum, either in complete shambles or menacingly put-together. And when they manage to bend the extremes to meet somewhere underneath, that’s when you really need to watch your back... Yeah, they’re good enough to be just another down ‘n’ dirty hardcore band. It’s the fatalistic push to the brink of annihilation that makes them worth remembering." - Dusted Magazine
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/totalabuse
| TV GHOST |
4 young dudes from Lafayette, IN, making rowdy, dark, angular rock music. Kinda like Suicide meets Beefheart, played by four anxious teenagers from Indiana. "If you like your punk rock dangerous and edged with synth-paranoia — well, first of all let’s be friends, but more importantly, do not sleep on TV Ghost... The Indiana band imagines surf rock as a very bad trip…and that is a very good trip." - RCRD LBL
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/televisionghost
| TWIN SISTER |
"It is a shimmering a dreamy affair that brings to mind what happens when dreamy indie pop meets languid shoegaze in a dew-covered meadow of pre-dawn English folk songs. This New York based band shows that they can be experimental without being tedious and (with that) have pushed one of the most unexpectedly awesome releases I’ve heard all year across my plate and yours." - Can You See The Sunset
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://twinsistermusic.com/
| VIDEOHIPPOS |
"Like members of any good scene, the bands in Baltimore's Wham City collective and satellite friends approach a similar aesthetic from different angles. They turn the garage-party aesthetic into a faded photograph the way My Bloody Valentine suffocated eros with a pillow...it sounds at once a part of its scene and completely contrary to it, the warm crash as the sugar wears off." - Pitchfork
| SITE |-- http://videohippos.com
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/videohippos
| WASHED OUT |
"Mr. Greene lives with his parents in their house in a peach grove in Perry, Ga., but there’s nothing rural about his style — wistful lo-fi pop with hints of disco and hip-hop that sounds like re-creations of songs faintly remembered. In recent months Washed Out has released a pair of EPs , the outstanding “Life of Leisure” (Mexican Summer) and the more scattershot, limited-run, cassette-only “High Times” (Mirror Universe Tapes)." - NY Times
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/thebabeinthewoods
| THE WAVE PICTURES |
"The Wave Pictures are a deeply personal band – their lyrics full of intimate detail, the semi-lo-fi quality of their recordings covering the music in a layer of cozy crackle. This three-piece from a London write music whose lilting effervescence paints life with a kind of sepia nostalgia, an intoxicating blend of 1950s riffs and failed, baffling relationships – you can’t help but become wrapped up in it. It’s no coincidence lead singer Dave Tattersall has toured with most of the leading lights of the New York anti-folk scene, there’s definitely a shared aesthetic here, a dedication to specificity that lends every song the same warped candor as some discarded notebook." - Drowned In Sound
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/thewavepictures
| WET HAIR |
From Iowa City, "Chances are they’ve watched at least a few episodes of TV Party, what with their tinny faux-organ drones and dubby vocal reverbs and echoes ripping out more than simply a page or two from the Suicide rulebook. Chances are they spent at least one late night watching horrid local bands play at some shitty outdoor venue in the middle of nowhere, what with their removed, spacey, and ambient approach to simple pop songs and sounds. And chances are they’ve watched at least one industrial film or government-financed borderline-propaganda documentary, what with the antiquated and bare-bones aesthetic they uphold throughout the entire sound of Dream." - TINY MIX TAPES
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/wethairgoldsounds
| WHITE NINJA |
"Ripping soaring tracks prove to be more than pure cacophonous noise in White Ninja’s opera prima, the revealing Guacala los Modernos y su Electro is nothing short than exhilarating. Frenzied from beginning to end, this is an accessible and complex first album, one of those rare findings that although tiny on the surface, bring variation to Mexico’s exceedingly modular rock scene... The band could be described as a series of adrenaline rushes, well backed up by jammed technos and unbounded clutter." - Club Fonograma
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://recordsaredead.com
| XYX |
"...Fuzzy guitars zig zag turbulent like a crippled joyride in the rusty carousel of vampire haunted Santa Carla, there’s a bunch of leather-clad kids with long yellow fangs and cool raybans floating in the darkness outside the bonfire of your keg-party and the rest of the story is pure splatter, which is the way we like it." - 20 Jazz Funk Greats
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/xyxs
| YOUNG PRISMS |
"If there is a new band that can successfully warm spirits and slowly coax one out of said Monday grog it's Young Prisms. The quintet from California released a 12" self-titled EP via Mexican Summer not too long ago but currently claim to be unsigned. However, they also claim Charlton Heston as a driving influence.. so they've got that going for 'em as well." - I Guess I'm Floating
| MYSPACE / MP3s |-- http://myspace.com/youngprisms
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| ARTISTS SHOWING VISUAL WORK AT THE FESTIVAL |
| JD BELTRAN |
"Faced with the compelling psychology and rich history of the painted portrait, I soon became intrigued with exploring the language and concept of portraiture – using painting, photography, text, film, video, sculpture, installation, sound, and intermedia. I’m also curious about the very concept of a portrait – how one can convey not only a person, but a place, a city, even an episode. By rendering my work in a variety of media, and portraying a range of subjects, I am investigating the vocabulary of portraiture." - From the Artist
| SITE |-- http://jdbeltran.com
| ALEC DARTLEY |
Alec Dartley has been working on a group of paintings exploring sculptural shapes with close value relations. The surfaces of his pictures vary from grounds of opaque color to areas that are solid.The compositions are made in an intuitive manner, trying to make a weird and unknowable space.As the
compositions are found so are the meanings. - From the artist
| SITE |-- http://tiny.cc/8fBY5
| STEPHANIE DAVIDSON |
Stephanie Davidson is an artist from Toronto who is interested in many mediums. Most of her work involves taking digital ephemera out of context and seeing what kind of emotional connection the viewer makes. She works in painting, collage, and video.
| SITE |-- http://stephd.biz
| DANNY DURTSCHE & JOSHUA SCHWARTZ |
Daniel Durtsche - Born in 1982 in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Lives & works in New York City. Joshua Schwartz is a multi-disciplinary Artist whose work often teeters on the line between fact and fiction. He currently lives and works in New York City. - From the artists
| SITE FOR DANNY DURTSCHE |-- http://ddd.mousesafari.com/
| SITE FOR JOSHUA SCHWARTZ |-- http://www.joshuaschwartz.net/
| RYAN LAY |
Ryan Lay lives and works in Tempe, Arizona. He is interested in past religious and cultural movements and what relevance devotion has in the 21st century. - From the artist
| SITE |-- http://ryanscottlay.com/
| KATJA MATER |
Katja Mater’s (b. 1979) work originates from a meta perspective, dealing with the possibilities and impossibilities of Photography and Video. Rather than documenting frozen moments in time, she records the numerous ways we can look at, and think about photographic images by turning the medium in on itself. In the video piece 'Cumulus', open books of the Amsterdam Public Library pass in front of the camera showing images of clouds. Moving from right to left, the clouds as still images embedded in text, are reanimated into a narrative arc through the illusionary framework of video. Katja lives and works in Amsterdam, Her work has been exhibited throughout Europe, and the US. - From the artist
| SITE |-- http://katjamater.nl
| MICHAEL RAY-VON / CORY HANSON |
"Michael Ray-Von works with concepts and themes related to sacred ritual, religious architecture and mystic experience. He addresses the relationship of these subjects to, and concurrence with, their allegedly profane, contemporary counterparts, which he often finds in human-computer int
I've been working with Shaw Promotion since 2005 helping promote some of the best underground parties and rad lifestyle products like Ben Sherman, Converse, Doc Martens, T-Mobile, Penguin, tons of great indie films and bands, blah blah. I HEART Shaw Promotion...
That's right chavitos!! Hopefully ya'll get into the Davila 666/Dirt Bombs show @ Knitting Factory...BUT looks like RSVP is closed so good luck!
Davila 666 are my #1 favorite garage rock n' rollers from Puerto Rico...I love them like a hardcore skinhead loves a good punch in the face! They have great songs, they have awesome live shows, and these boys are just all around nice boys w/ a heart for rock n' roll. They will be performing at the SCION GARAGE SHOW @ the Knitting Factory in Brooklyn on Thurs, Feb 25th (with the DIRTBOMBS). Make sure to RSVP for free entry!
What: SCION GARAGE SHOW PRESENTS
I am totally looking forward to this movie. I hope it doesn't suck... 
