Milk! Records 2015 - Free mini album

The kind label bosses at Milk! Records in Melbourne are offering a free download of six of their favorite songs from the label's 2015 releases.  Featuring songs by the inimitable Courtney Barnett (who, with Jen Cloher (track three) is one of said label bosses), Fraser Gorman and other artists you really should get to know.



Bandcamp

Ette - Special Occasions

What kind of idiot would feature a special edition Christmas single the week after Christmas?  That would be me.  In the rush of getting ready to slide down snowy slopes across the border Christmas week, I failed to tell you about the double A-side Special Occasions by Ette.  The two songs are "Spending Christmas With My Boy" and "Birthday".

Ette is a solo project of Carla Easton of TeenCanteen, with the able assistance of Joe Kane (Dr Cosmos's Tapelab).  This release isn't a one-off, however, as Ette's debut album Homemade Lemonade will be released in 2016 by Olive Grove Records.  On the lead track Carla's vocals recall your favorite '60s girl-group while the lyrics and chiming effects infuse holiday spirit.  "Birthday" is a sweet little tune bound to provoke a smile.

Special Occasions is available as a digital download or a limited edition Christmas bauble with a download code.





Facebook
Carla J. Easton's website
Bandcamp for Special Occasions
Twitter

Dead Boy Robotics - New Cells

The Edinburgh trio of Dead Boy Robotics, consisting of Gregor McMillan, Mike Bryant, and Paul Bannon, craft dark, noisey synth rock anthems begging for late night audiences comfortable with an aggressive noir and big arena volume.  Their latest album is New Cells, out now via Brothers Grimm, and it is an excellent introduction to their sound.  Jump and writhe to it on the dance floor or just let the pulsating waves wash over you, this is compelling pop music in a playfully sinister wrapper.  A few tracks are provided below.  You can listen to the entire album on Spotify and iTunes.





Website
Facebook
Soundcloud
Twitter

"Flowers" by Dot Dash - Video and Free Download

One of our favorite spring albums this year was Earthquakes & Tidal Waves by Washington, D.C. quartet Dot Dash.  Terry Banks (vocals/guitar), Steve Hansgen (lead guitar), Hunter Bennett (bass) and Danny Ingram (drums), vets of Julie Ocean, Minor Threat, Swervedriver, The Saturday People, Youth Brigade, Modest Proposal and others, brew a muscular concoction of power pop, jangle and post punk.  They have just unveiled a video for album track "Flowers", and in a generous spasm of anti-commercial sentiment, are offering it for free download here.  See the video below, and take the time to check out the full album at the Bandcamp link below.




Facebook
Bandcamp for Earthquakes & Tidal Waves
Twitter
The Beautiful Music (label)

Video for "Boyfriend" by Goon Sax

Of course a band named after budget boxed wine will film a video of their single that took ten minutes to write in a college studio with the band and the videographer taking all of the roles.  But the thing of it is, "Boyfriend" by Goon Sax is a sardonic delight, and the video does it justice.  So here you are --


The song now is available as a digital single, and will be on the band's upcoming debut LP, Up To Anything, which will be released by Chapter Music in April.

Facebook
Bandcamp for single

"Big Girls" by Sophie and The Bom Boms

I must admit that when a press agent sent me a song that is described as part Sleigh Bells and part Jackson 5, my inclination was to ignore it.  But I listened to "Big Girls" by Sophie and The Bom Boms (which usually is only Sophie Stern) and came to two conclusions: Accuracy should be rewarded; and damn, that is a catchy song.  So here for the pleasuring of your ears is "Big Girls.


Facebook
Soundcloud
Twitter

Breakfast Muff - Rainbow Yawn

We want to address a serious issue.  Seasonal affective disorder cripples many young adults just as they should be building their careers.  Winter comes, days get short and we withdraw, get depressed and underachieve.  The personal and societal cost is immense, and the tragedy unnecessary.  Through diligent trial and error we at WYMA have developed strategies to beat this affliction.  Today, we unveil our favorite ("favourite" for our Glasgow friends) approach:  Daily Breakfast Muff.  Yes, we have found that a dose of Breakfast Muff starts the day out with the proper frame of mind, a bounce in the step, a feeling of accomplishment, and perhaps a bit of sweat on the upper lip to let you know you started the day with … well … a bang.

Glasgow's Breakfast Muff delivers distortion, with, lyrical gutter fantasy in seven garage punk songs on Rainbow Yawn.  No tentative debut, this.  It says love us or fuck off, or at least buy us a beer, in no uncertain terms.  It is the product of the delightfully flawed minds of Cal (Youngstrr Joey/Spinning Coin), Eilidh (FROTH) and Simone (FROTH), and you can listen to brief stories about Satan, who is not down to fuck, horny people, and other topics of interest.  The tunes are good and the energy infectious.  Stream some or all of it below, and see the Bandcamp link to make it your very own.  Make a note of it: Breakfast Muff is what the body needs.

Rainbow Yawn is out on December 19 via Fuzzkill Records, which seems to be a destination for a number of exciting acts in Glasgow.  The record is available as on cassette and as a digital download.







Facebook
Bandcamp for Rainbow Yawn
Twitter
Fuzzkill Records

Catholic Easter Colors - Not The Silence That Was There Before

Catholic Easter Colors are an indie pop band from Birmingham, Alabama.  They recently released a very nice set of reflective songs titled Not The Silence That Was There Before via their Bandcamp page.  You can stream the EP below, and it is available to own on cassette or as a digital download.  The digital version is name your price, but as the band recently suffered a loss due to a car break-in while touring, it would be wonderful - especially this time of year - to actually pay a bit for the download.




Facebook
Bandcamp for EP

"Falling To Believe" by Doug Tuttle

Doug Tuttle is a master of lo-fi psychedelia, mining that aurally rich channel cutting between psychedelic pop and acid folk.  Since the demise of his prior band Mmoss, Tuttle has been working under his own name.  On February 19, 2016, he will release his second solo album, It Calls On Me, via Chicago's Trouble In Mind Records.  Here is the first single, with hints of Kurt Vile and The Byrds, and a jaunty '70s guitar solo.  Lovely stuff that sticks in your mind like the image of your favorite crush smiling at you.  Yes, it is that good.




Facebook
Twitter
Trouble In Mind Records

Michael Knight - Physics Is Out To Get Me

How are you dealing with Monday?  We're dealing with it with some orchestral, '60s influenced indie pop via Michael Knight, and their new album is Physics Is Out To Get Me.  Cue it up the instruments swell, the choruses soar, and your spirits lift as if the weekend hadn't abandoned you like your last girlfriend/boyfriend - and the girlfriend/boyfriend before that one.  Comparisons have been made '60s popsters the Left Banke and to the more recent Canadian band Hidden Cameras, or perhaps the Magnetic Fields on uppers, but whether they remind you of past favorites or not, this album is an excellent way to get holiday cheer without actually listening to holiday music.  That alone should earn a nomination to the Nobel Peace Prize.

Michael Knight was founded by Richard Murphy, an Irishman transplanted to Berlin, Mike Cleare, Henrike Rabe and Martin Petersdorf.  But you don't make orchestral pop with just a few musicians, and many friends helped with Physics Is Out To Get Me, adding strings, horns and additional vocals to the duo's already varied and vibrant creations.

Physics Is Out To Get Me is out via Jigsaw Records, and is available to stream/obtain at the links below.









Facebook
Jigsaw Records page for the album
Bandcamp for album
Twitter
Jigsaw Records

"Spectres" by De Rosa

Scottish band De Rosa received critical acclaim for their two albums in the '00s, Mend and Prevention, both of which were released by Chemikal Underground.  When the band split up in 2009, fans assumed that there would be no more music from De Rosa.  Understandable, but wrong.  The original line up of frontman Martin John Henry (guitar and vocals), James Woodside (bass) and Neil Woodside (drums) will release a new album, titled Weem, in 2016 via Rock Action Records.  "Spectres" is the first single from the LP, and it demonstrates why the band's return will be eagerly welcomed by indie rock fans.



Website
Facebook
Twitter
Rock Action Records

Persian Rugs - This Is OK For Now

Toronto's Persian Rugs cover the floor from wall to wall, window to door.  Noise pop, jangle pop, dream pop, punk, and a dose of twee.  Their album, This Is OK For Now, was released in 2014, but it doesn't seem to have received the coverage it deserves.  The tastemakers at Jigsaw records discovered it on the internet, and offered to re-release it.  So all eight tracks now are available in digital and CD formats.

The album kicks off with a rush of noise pop via "Bedhead".  "I Wanted Something More" delivers bubbling pop with a current of jangle.  Standout track "Naked" brings '60s girl group sounds up to current status.  The mood becomes sweet for "Cotton Candy", then picks up for an ode an affliction of the young - "Underemployed".  The album closes with three dreamy jangle pop gems: "Falling Through The Floor" and "Comic Book Dreams".  This is a wonderful little album to brighten you mood.  You deserve it, don't you?





Persian Rugs are Ali, Ian, Kaye, and Matt.

Facebook
Website
Bandcamp for album
Twitter
Jigsaw Records

Eyes of Others - Nightwalking EP

I just lifted my head up and looked out my office window.  What I see is cold rain, driven by a stiff wind.  And despite being on the 33rd floor, I can't see much because of the fog and low-hanging clouds.  This requires the infusion of synth pop to maintain an even keel until beer-thirty (which according to the powers that be, will in fact occur at 5 pm today).  Specifically, I have turned to the Nightwalking EP from Edinburgh's Eyes of Others.  Artfully blending '80s electronica with bubbling synth pop, Eyes of Others is interesting, soothing and infuses me with a cool, calm while watching the torrents of rain.

Eyes of Others is the work of composer/producer John Bryden.  You can stream all the tracks below, and listen to two previous singles at the Bandcamp link.





Nightwalking is a digital release via Club Fandango/INgrooves, so check your favorite digital source.

Facebook
Soundcloud
Bandcamp
Twitter

The Creeping Ivies - Your New Favourite Garage Band

We are fans of truth in advertising, so we heartily endorse the name of the new release from Glasgow's The Creeping Ivies.  Yes, the title of Your New Favourite Garage Band tells you what the goods are, and you'll be happy about that.  The Creeping Ivies are a three-piece band who combine garage and roots rock with attitude and energy.  Ian Duncan on drums and Mark McLaughlin on provide a sturdy rhythm that makes this record a must for anyone's party soundtrack while reminding us of The Ramones and Bo Diddley.  Becca Murray on vocals and guitar is an absolute force of rock and roll nature, projecting attitude, fierce confidence and passion in one fiery package that will accept no second place in any comparison.  The trio manages simultaneously project stylish grit and side street menace, while giving you a wink and a good time.  If, I mean when, you get this album you'll play it over and over.  You may feel guilty that you are ignoring other albums.  But then you'll remember the great sounds of The Creeping Ivies, and listen to this album again because, as you will correctly conclude, this is why we listen to rock and roll.

Long-time fans may have a number of these tracks via previous EP and singles releases, but many are available on CD for the first time with this album, all conveniently assembled by Glasgow label Flowers In The Dustbin as a digital download or CD.  See the Bandcamp link below for a full album stream.

Website
Facebook
Twitter
Bandcamp for album
Flowers In The Dustbin

Postal Blue - Of Love & Other Affections

True indie pop fans know that art has no geographic boundaries.  Jigsaw Records proves it with Of Love & Other Affections, the latest record from Postal Blue.  Founded in the late '90s, the Brazilian project has released several EPs and one LP.  Most of the material has been classic indie pop, but their first LP included some bossa nova inspired songs and their third EP marked recording in the band's native Portuguese. Originally a four-piece, Postal Blue now lives via Adriano, who continued after the other members left for other projects.

The ten songs on Of Love & Other Affections are indie pop at its best.  Sweet vocals with an Edwyn Collins warble, unabashedly jangling guitars, and arrangements that recall classic Scandinavian pop, as well as Postcard Records and Sarah Records bands.  At times uplifting, other times melancholy, it consistently draws smiles and sighs.  One listen in, I'd added it my my favorite playlist.  Choosing a favorite song to showcase the album is like having to publicly declare your favorite child.  But the three below serve the cause well.

The album is available from Jigsaw Records as a digital download and a CD.  Ordering and full streams at the Bandcamp link below.







Facebook
Website
Bandcamp for album
Twitter

KiDD - Hotchpotch

If you have followed Scottish pop over the years, you have heard Stuart KiDD, even if you haven't heard any of his work under his own name.  He has been a member of several bands, including the venerable BMX Bandits, St Deluxe, Harmony Springs, The Store Keys, and The Wellgreen, and he has played with Jonny, Linden and Pearlfishers, among others.  We are fans of his work, and featured some of it three years ago (link).

KiDD's label, The Barne Society, has released a limited edition cassette of songs Stuart has recorded in recent years.  The songs were picked by Stuart himself, and provide an excellent and varied listening experience.  Among the highlights are the '60s pop of opener "Alfie" (did The Beach Boys mislay this one when mixing Pet Sounds?), the roots/psych of "4 Leaf Clover", the Beatle-esque "Win Or Lose", the shuffling plea to a lover who intends to leave of "Win Or Lose", the pastoral pop of "Turquoise" and "Leave Me Here I'm Sleeping" (which bring to mind Fleet Foxes), the country pop "Ring the Belle", and the dreampop "Rooftop Cityscape".  You can stream, and order, the entire album at the Bandcamp link below.







Facebook
Bandcamp
Twitter

The Ocean Party - Light Weight

We try to be helpful here at WYMA, so today I'm going to make a gift recommendation for the number one indie pop fan in your life.  The identity of that person probably looks back at you when you stand in front of the mirror, so no postage will be required.  However, if you have friends who like indie pop, you can give this gift as well.  In fact, as psychologists say that the best gifts are those that reflect the tastes of the giver, you probably should give this gift to all of your indie pop-loving friends.  The gift is Light Weight, the new album from Melbourne's The Ocean Party.

This record succeeds on so many fronts.  Because multiple members of the band write, there is incredible freshness to each song.  And perhaps due to an understandable, if unconscious,  competitiveness, each song is a self-contained gem.  One might expect that an album representing this many voices would provide a disconnected listening experience.  But in fact, the album is a coherent aural presentation of introspection set in spacious arrangements.  The songs are gorgeous, bathing your ears in delightful melodies and subtle instrumental details.  It all goes down so easily that your first impression could be that Light Weight is, well, light weight.  But each successive listen will reinforce the perfection of the music, the discipline of the performance and, most of all, the heavy weight lyrical punch.  Of course, that means we hear disappointment, regret, insecurity and revealed flaws.  But the nuanced wording and honesty of expression make the hearing a joy, rather than a bummer.

Three great tracks are below, but try to find and stream the title track and "Real Life" as well.  Hell, stream the whole thing.  Better yet, buy it and listen to all of the songs over and over.  By the way, there are no geographic excuses to not buying Light Weight.  It is released in the United States by Austin Town Hall Records (which is related to the excellent Austin Town Hall music blog), in Australia and New Zealand by Spunk Records, and in the UK and Europe by Caroline Records.







Facebook
Twitter
Austin Town Hall Records
Spunk Records

Hooton Tennis Club - Highest Point In Cliff Town

Tennis, anyone?  OK, that isn't the most original lead-in, and Liverpool's Hooton Tennis Club most likely has heard it more than a few times.  But often you get what you pay for, and I write for free.

Hooton Tennis Club, which is named after an actual tennis club is comprised of Ryan Murphy, Jaes Madden, Callum McFadden, and Harry Chalmers, long time friends whose demos attracted the attention of Heavenly Recordings.  Signatures on the dotted line led to recording The Highest Point In Cliff Town -- twelve tracks of swaggering indie rock that sounds like a cross of '90s Britpop and Scott & Charlene's Wedding.  Breezy in attitude, loose at the edges, and muscular when it needs to be, it varies among powerpop anthems, woozy jams and party sing-alongs.  We found it a very satisfying album, and if you like well constructed and good-natured guitar rock as much as we do, you owe it to yourself to check this album out.  I expect it will be on a few year-end lists, and I think it may make mine.








Facebook
Soundcloud
Tumblr
Twitter
Heavenly Recordings page for Highest Point In Cliff Town

"Underprotected" / "Chocolate and Salt" by Paddy Hanna

We've featured the music of Dublin's Paddy Hanna recorded under his own name, and with other projects.  Today, we are bringing you the two songs on his new "Underprotected" single.  Available as of December 4 (at the Bandcamp link below), it reveals Paddy to be a musician of formidable talents.  The lead track is a perfect mini-epic to our ears, and then the b-side steals the scene.  We are reminded of Edwyn Collins here, and that's no bad thing at all.

For this recording, the players are Paddy Hanna (guitar/vocals/keys), Mark Chester (guitar), Bobby Aherne (bass), and Enda Canavan (drums).



Facebook
Bandcamp for single
Soundcloud
Twitter

The Hermit Crabs - In My Flat

Every being has its nature.  Hermit crabs stay out of sight much of the time, and then scuttle into view in all of their cute glory.  They thrill for a while -- especially other beings who like to consume them -- and then they are gone until the next fortunate sighting.  Such is the case with Glasgow's land-based version, The Hermit Crabs.  Melanie Whittle formed the band in 2003.  Since then, there have been one LP and several EPs, with various additional temporary crabs supporting Mel.  True, not a massive output, but what do you expect from hermit crabs?

Happily, the band has emerged into the sunlight again with In My Flat, which I think is the band's best work yet.  Recorded in Idaho with Jeremy Jensen and Jake Hite of The Very Most (with whom Mel collaborates as Baffin Island), it comprises eight songs pop songs featuring Whittle's delicate and pristine voice, appealing melodies, and uncomplicated but interesting instrumentation.  And as always is the case with a recording from The Hermit Crabs, Whittle's compositions are a star of the proceedings.  Personal, intimate, revealing, feisty and witty, she paints evocative little portraits of life in a manner reminiscent of Scottish indie pop peers Belle & Sebastian and Camera Obscura.  This record does what good indie pop should do -- make you sigh, may you smile, and prompt you to tap your foot or even dance around the room.  If mixtapes still are a thing you do, a few of these may end up in the hands of your special friends.  The Hermits Crabs are back in the sunlight, get yourself some.

In My Flat is available in CD or digital formats via Matinee Recordings.







Website
Facebook
Twitter
Matinee Recordings page for In My Flat