The Stepkids - Suburban Dream

The Stepkids release their self-titled album officially on 27th September and it is well worth getting it on to your iPod or cd player.  Take a listen to one of the tracks, Suburban Dream, here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwbR8ubfHtY    This has been likened in one review to something that might have come from Dark Side Of The Moon.   Steely Dan, Can, Sly & The Family Stone and Yes have also been mentioned.  Bits of these bands and more can be heard in this album but they also sound refreshingly original.   The Stepkids produce, engineer and record themselves on a reel to reel and the sound can perhaps best be described as a mixture of classic soul and funk, 60s psychedelia and jazz.   The band members are all singer/songwriters whose creative input is equally distributed so any track could be written or sung by any of them.  All have played in other bands in the past and when they finally got together they simply decided to extract all the best bits from their favourite music over the years, from the 60s up to today.   And it all works surprisingly well. 

Two excellent singles have been released earlier this year (Legend In My Own Mind and Shadows On Behalf)  and the buzz around them continues to grow.  They are currently touring The States but sadly there is no sign of them coming to the UK in the near future.

http://thestepkidsband.com/

Dog Is Dead - Hands Down

Nottingham's Dog Is Dead look so young and geeky that they really shouldn't be much good.  But armed with what look like instruments from the classroom (this exact model of glockenspiel IS in fact sitting around in abundance in my local high school's music room I'm reliably told) they make a surprisingly wonderful sound here in a live version of Hands Down, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KD23KfBYgJw&feature=share which will be their next single due for release on 30th October.  The recorded version is much louder and electrified but both are good. 

Dog Is Dead don't need any gimmicks because their music really does speak for itself.   They have been signed to Atlantic are supporting Bombay Bicycle Club this autumn so hopefully they will pick up some more fans along the way.   Apparently they appeared in a closing scene of series 5 of Skins (no, I don't watch it) where they played one of their singles in a marquee and were joined in song by the cast.  So do I think they will appeal just to the teen generation then?  Absolutely not.   Having been performing since 2008, they have gained a musical maturity and yet it also feels that they are not taking themselves too seriously and that will undoubtedly see them cross over to all ages in the way The Arctic Monkeys did.  Check out the tracks, Young and Glockenspiel Song and also the live videos on YouTube.

Michael Kiwanuka - I'm Getting Ready

Oh what bliss!  I have just got my hands on Michael Kiwanuka's new ep, of which I'm Getting Ready is the title track http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlXkKCa2yy0
It is the second ep release from this talented singer-songwriter and there will be an LP release (as yet untitled) in February of next year.  I also have tickets to see Michael in Liverpool next month so I that's something I'm very much looking forward to as well.

From what I can gather from Michael's blogs, Facebook page and website, ticket sales are doing really well and at least one show has already sold out with another date added so things are looking good for him, and rightly so.   If you haven't heard Michael's songs yet (where have you been?!) then do take a listen.  His early release, Tell Me A Tale is on this blog and there is plenty of stuff to find on You Tube.  It is still difficult to believe that Michael is only 23 years old.  Vocally assured,  he sounds as if he has been around for years.  I am looking forward to seeing what the future holds for him.

The Horrible Crowes - Behold the Hurricane

Bought more on a whim than for any other reason as part of a 2 for £10 deal on Amazon when I wanted Beirut's new album last week and was pushed for time to choose another, Elsie is the debut album by The Horrible Crowes which is basically Brian (The Gaslight Anthem) Fallon's side project, alongside friend and guitarist Ian Perkins. 

This track, Behold the Hurricane, was the first single http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fi-a5OktorM 
and it's a catchy enough radio-friendly tune which will keep me relatively happy while driving I suppose although as a whole the album is not going to set the world on fire.

Fallon has his devoted fans though and he is by no means a bad songwriter, it is just that we seem to have heard and seen all this before.  Many times.   But I'm prepared to give it a few more listens.  Maybe its a grower, who knows.  Describing his intention when recording this album, Fallon has said: "I've always wanted to experiment with the darker side of soul music and one day we were just like, 'let's write some songs and see what they sound like,' and it turned out that it sounded great."

http://thehorriblecrowes.com/

Treetop Flyers - It's About Time

September 18th sees the release of the latest Treetop Flyers single, It's About Time.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE2L2kJqlxQ If you've been a fan of the band for a while (and you will know I have from my previous posting) you will notice that this isn't a new song and in fact was released in 2009 on their debut ep.  This time out sees it re-recorded with a new video to promote it.  Any disappointment in there not being a new song at this time will hopefully be swiftly alleviated by the news that a full album will be along later in the year.  About time too guys.  Still, this is a great song - much better than a lot of the new stuff around - so I am more than happy to post it on here.  Enjoy.

Beirut - East Harlem

The album The Rip Tide from American band Beirut was released on Monday and I have been enjoying it whenever I can.  There are so many good tracks on it that I didn't know which one to choose, so opted for the track East Harlem as there is a great little live video on YouTube.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGxAUphrpi8

Beirut haven't released an album for four years so there was a certain amount of trepidation accompanying its release.  Thankfully it doesn't disappoint.  The wonderful brass accompaniments remain, as does Zach Condon's wonderful vocal depth and beautiful melodies.  As before, the melodies conjour up various world musical styles (Mexico, France etc).  Zach played the trumpet in a jazz band as a teenager so maybe that has contributed to his unique style.

Anyway, take a listen for yourself.  You won't regret buying this little gem.

http://beirutband.com/