The xx - "You've Got the Love" (Remix) [ft. Florence Welch]

I wasn't the biggest fan of this song the first time around, but only once before have I ever seen footage of a remix done featuring both the original artist and the band doing the remix with such excellency. Florence kills the vocal work so hard that you don't believe it is live until she walks out on stage. Looks like the xx live show has picked up since I saw them last October.

Video: Crystal Castles - "Celestia"

Trance-goth duo Crystal Castles have released a video for the first single Celestia off their new album which is once again self titled. The elcectro assault continues on the new album with intense pulsing beats and dense vocals from Alice Glass along the lines of recent witch haus trends. This single along with the track "Pap Smear" are sure to jams at raves all summer and the rest of the year as well.

Wavves - "Post Acid"

Garage Pop act Wavves have in my opinion been one of the most overrated acts in recent years. Many have acclaimed the loud disjointed fuzzed out noise rock, but I have always looked the other way to acts like Crocodiles, No Age, Japandroids, and HEALTH. However the first single from the forthcoming LP King of the Beach has shifted my interest. "Post Acid" has a pop punk vibe to it but still carries a distorted lo-fi guitar jangle feel. Green Label Sound has a link for the mp3 here.

Rock the Bells 2010

I don't usually give much attention to hip-hop on here not because I'm not a fan, but because it is not really my expertise. I appreciate good hip-hop and will listen to most of it, commercial radio hip-hop/rap has never really sparked my interest though. However with that said, I feel I really need to address how awesome this years Rock the Bells festival is going to be and I have not posted in a while and this seems like the best thing to address. Along with previously mentioned acts like Wu-Tang performing 36 Chambers, Rakim, and Slick Rick yesterday the festival announced the additions of A Tribe Called Quest, Snoop Dogg, and the ever elsusive Ms. Lauryn Hill!

LCD Soundsystem played Terminal 5

LCD Soundsystem wrapped up their four night home town stint at Terminal 5 last night with their traditional house rocking tendencies. Despite performing the same set list all four nights the intensity on the final performance was still spot on. James Murphy and company rocked a wide selection of tracks all containing the dancy disco beats, post-punk bass, and krauty guitar which LCD is known. While Murphy's side comments were entertaining between songs, the man's song writing skills have certainly grown as time has progressed. Sound of Silver was certainly acclaimed by the blog world and This Is Happening may be even better. Murphy surely does his homework while crafting his tunes as his influences are highly visible throughout each album (listen to "All I Want" followed by David Bowie's "'Heroes'". However while his punk ethos remain true, his performance is unquestionably top quality. His backing band sounded flawless ripping through solos and moving the crowd for roughly two hours. Long time fans were rewarded and vividly apparent for classics such as "Daft Punk Is Playing at My House" and "Losing My Edge" but new favorite "Drunk Girls" catapulted the audience into a frenzy. In addition to the stellar musicianship ,a pulsating light show assisted in the intensity of the show. Main set closer "Yeah" lost the audience in a haze of fog accompanied by alien green lights and throbbing strobes. However it was home town anthem "New York I Love You But You're Bringing Me Down" that, well... brought the house down especially when the chorus to Jay-Z's "Empire State of Mind" was added and ushered out what is rumored to be the last LCD tour. Although James assured us he'd be back to New York.

Setlist:
Us v Them
Drunk Girls
Get Innocuous
Yr City's A Sucker
Pow Pow
Daft Punk is Playing at My House
All I Want
All My Friends
I Can Change
Tribulations
Movement
Yeah
--
Someone Great
Losing My Edge
New York, I Love You But Your Bringing Me Down

New Arcade Fire Soon!

The end of school has once again resulted in a lack of posts. However Arcade Fire seem to understand as they wish "good luck with finals" in a recent post stating that their new single will be here in the coming weeks!

Beach House played Webster Hall

Summer finally hit New York City this past week just in time for a night of hazy pop music. Chillwave outfit Washed Out kicked things off with his bass heavy fuzz jams recalling 90s beats and lo-fi swirling vocals. The muddy choppy sounds were a fitting start to the majestic sounds that Beach House would soon deliver. As the opening sounds of "Walk in the Park" resonated through Webster Hall it was clear that the band had descended from the heavens and brought their silvery sparkled moon rock set with them. The drizzling guitar put the hall in a trance completely under the control of Victoria Legrand's booming cosmic voice. Of course certain numbers were the highlights of the evening, the set list comprised all of Teen Dreams. While all three albums were represented it was the new tunes that rocked Victoria onto the floor. We were even treated to the debut of a new song called "White Moon." The show was droning and melodic, but by the time "10 Mile Stereo" was ringing out the night, I had been won over. Everything from "Gila" to "Master of None" to Take Care" was brilliant; each a simple sun-drenched pop song.

Setlist:
Walk in the Park
Lover of Mine
Gila
Better Times
Norway
Silver Soul
Master of None
Astronaut
White Moon (new song)
Used to Be
Zebra
Heart of Chambers
Take Care
--
Real Love
10 Miles Stereo

Interpol - "Lights"

At the beginning of the past decade it looked like Interpol was going to be the next big thing along the lines of The Strokes and The White Stripes. They were a bass booming band from New York and the guy sounded like Ian Curtis. Then things went a little sour. People didn't really like Antics as much as me, and their third release, Our Love to Admire, was when they really dropped the ball. But hey I'm never one to count someone out and the band stated at the end of last year that their next album was going back to the sound of Turn On the Bright Lights. Well the first song, entitled "Lights", is up for grabs on the band's site and by the sound of things (heavy bass and reverb) they are moving in a backward step (that's a good thing BTW). Here is to hoping the album follows through with that promise!

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart Played Other Music (Part of Record Store Day)

Aside from my birthday, Record Store Day may be my most looked forward to day of the year. It celebrates everything I love (bands, vinyl, performances) and packs it all into one awesome day. For the third year in a row independent record stores have celebrated this event with super limited releases, re-issues, and other awesome merchandise from genre crossing artists and labels. This year I picked up a Neil Young 7", a MC5 7", and a re-issue of the epic Modest Mouse classic The Moon and Antarctica on double 180 gram vinyl. To top the day off I headed back to NYC hot spot Other Music to catch an intimate performance of The Drums and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart. These aren't the types of shows I attend to see amazing performances, but merely to be a part of such a unique experience. The reconfigured store was jam packed with fans as the two bands ripped through their respective sets. TPOBPAH were my main draw for the evening as I have missed seeing them in the past and couldn't resist a FREE chance to see them up close. They rocked through lush, keyboard heavy, dream-pop that cracked the tiny speakers in the shop when the jangly guitar recalled 80s feelings of the Smiths and Jesus and Mary Chain. Favorites such as "Teenager in Love" and "This Love Is Fucking Right" were accompanied by new tunes that challenged the awesomeness of their previous numbers. In between songs the band mentioned their love for the store and the whole record day experience showing just how much this day can really bring together a community of people.

Darlings played Brooklyn Bowl

Brooklyn garage-pop ensemble Darlings got some buzz during the city's CMJ festival and recently did a stint at SXSW, however they have yet to get a real steady following. Their guitar fuzzed pop sound had lots of room to fill at the large Brooklyn Bowl and the early set time really prevented any sort of audience from packing the place. The squealing voice from the spastic guitarist matched up pretty well to the band's recordings however the band seemed to lack a sort of energy needed to make the songs really explode. "Eviction Party" could have got people moving had there been enough of a crowd and set closer "If This Is Love" really nailed the night for me. Perhaps these guys need to stick to smaller places for the time being until they can get enough people to really rock the walls.