Music Video Mondays...on a Wednesday? Dark Dark Dark seek the light

The idea of a forlorn chick wandering around in a space helmet might not be new, exactly (Computer Magic explore the same idea a year back) -- but there's something calming + serene about this new vid from Minneapolis's Dark Dark Dark, which portrays lead singer Nona seeking solace -- or possibly something greater.

   

"Tell Me" appears on the record Who Needs Who, out now. This Music Video Monday delay brought to you by Hurricane Sandy.

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INTRVW: Jeffrey Lewis

Jeffrey Lewis, anti-folk deity, troubadour, sage. There's a lot you can say about the incredibly prolific, 36-year-old New Yorker, whose impressive oeuvre spans several decades + genres.

Lewis, rocking a sweet sweater

Over at The Key, I sit down for a chat with Lewis -- to talk songwriting, touring, and making the most out of time....head there to check it out!

Previously on UE: Song of the Moment: Jeffrey Lewis, "Cult Boyfriend."

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Haiku Review: Divine Fits

High-stakes rock sputters

and spits; Dan and Britt share mel-

odies and passion

(photo by Matt Davis)

Check out the full review (Monday night, Union Transfer) here.

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XPN2 Playlist, 10/22/12

6:00

The Soft Pack, "Saratoga"

Strapped

Jaill, "Perfect Ten"
Traps

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Thee Oh Sees, "Lupine Dominus"

Putrifiers II

Miike Snow, "Song for No One"

Miike Snow

Two Door Cinema Club, "Wake Up"

Beacon

The Black Keys, "Money Maker"

El Camino

Twin Sister, "Bad Street"
In Heaven

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Blackbird Blackbird, "Happy With You"
Boracay Planet

Tanlines, "Green Grass"

Mixed Emotions

Oh Montreal, "Forecast Fascist Future"

The Sunlandic Twins

Talking Heads, "And She Was"
Little Creatures

Savoir Adore, "Anywhere You Go"
Our Nature

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Dragonette, "Right Woman"
Bodyparts

Icona Pop, feat. Charli XCX, "I Love It"
Iconic

Reptile Youth, "Shooting Up Sunshine"

Reptile Youth

 Google image result #22 for "Shooting Up Sunshine" (aka, the first

image result that's not a still from the SUS vid.) I expected these results

 to be much more drug-related (sunshine has to be a euphemism 

for something, right?); actually they were quite lovely

7:00

LCD Soundsystem, "I Can Change"

This Is Happening

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La Sera, "I Can't Keep You in My Mind"
Sees the Light

Dum Dum Girls, "Heartbeat (Take It Away)"

Only in Dreams

Hunx and His Punx, "Blow Me Away"
Too Young to Be in Love

The Vaccines, "No Hope
Come of Age

Gentleman Jesse, "We Got to Get Out of Here"

Leaving Atlanta

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Echo Orbiter, "Shark Bite Riot"

Aerosol Power

Mind Spiders, "More Than You"
Meltdown

Gospel Claws, "I Want It All"

Put Your Sunshine Away

Magic Kids, "Summer"
Memphis

Tennis, "Origins"

Young and Old

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Local Natives, "Breakers"
Hummingbird

Coeur de Pirate, "Ave"
Blonde

Little Brazil, "You and Me"

You and Me

I'm From Barcelona, "We're From Barcelona"
Let Me Introduce My Friends

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Japandroids, "The House That Heaven Built"

Celebration Rock

Tune in again next week for more sweet jamz, of the non-condiment variety.

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Music Video Mondays: Mind Spiders Creep

If the name "Mind Spiders" wasn't enough of a tip-off -- these Texas punks display a penchant for the creepy in this dark, dystopian vid for "Wait for Us":

   

"Wait for Us" appears on the record Meltdown, out now. Expect more morbid vids in the coming week, as we slowly approach the big H (Halloween).

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INTRVW: Savoir Adore

Brooklyn's Savoir Adore craft the sort of magical, feel-good tunes that seem to instantly transport you -- to a world where melodies are soft + vibrant, beats are lush + dance-y, and everything sparkles under the moonlight.

Savoir Adore (photo via Facebook)

In celebration of their brand new record (Our Nature, out now) + upcoming Philly stop (Fridays at Orlieb's), I caught up with one-half founding duo Paul Hammer to chat about life, love + everything in between -- head over to XPN's The Key to check it out!

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XPN2 Playlist, 10/15/12

6:00

The Hot Toddies, "Ordinateur Ordinaire"

Get Your Heart On

The Go! Team, "Voice Yr Choice"
Rolling Blackouts

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Hungry Kids of Hungary, "Good Times"
Mega Mountain

Eternal Summers, "Wonder"
Correct Behavior

The Pharmacy, "Sure"
Stoned & Alone

The Babies, "Get Lost"
Our House on the Hill

THEMES, "Play Along"

Loveweapons

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Clinc, "Misty"
Free Reign

Pixies, "Wave of Mutilation"
Doolittle

Animal Collective, "Monkey Riches"
Centipede Hz

VHS or Beta, "She Says"
Bring on the Comets

Portugal. The Man, "Head Is a Flame (Cool With It)"

In the Mountain in the Cloud

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Calexico, "Fortune Teller"

Algiers

Ports of Call, "Fadophobia"

Fractals

Tame Impala, "Feels Like We Only Go Backwards"
Lonerism

Google image result #5 for "We Only Go Backwards." Apparently

Tame Impala are so ubiquitous that ALL the google image results are

actually about them. These small children apparently sung "We Only

Go Backwards" in school chorus or something,  b/c 

nobody sings "Yankee Doodle" anymore.

7:00

The Horrors, "Moving Further Away"
Skying

Free Energy, "Dance All Night"

Love Sign

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Savoir Adore, "Loveliest Creature"

Our Nature

Freelance Whales, "Land Features"
Diluvia

Walk the Moon, "I Want! I Want!"

I Want! I Want!a

Princeton, "Calypso Gold"
Cocoon of Love

Pants Yell!, "We've Got History"
Recent Drama

Islands, "Lonely Love"
A Sleep & A Forgetting

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Mean Lady, "Bop Bop"

Bop Bop b/w Far Away (7")

Hospitality, "Eighth Avenue"

Hospitality

Allo Darlin', "My Heart Is a Drummer"
Allo Darlin'

Peter Bjorn and John, "Breaker Breaker"

Gimme Some

The Darkness, "I Believe in a Thing Called Love"
Permission to Land

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Hockey, "Song Away"
Mind Chaos

Tune in again next week for more cool tunes!

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Music Video Mondays: Witch Gardens go blindfolded + Cloud Nothings exploit synchronized swimmers

You know that old Halloween game where you are blindfolded, then presented with bowls of peeled grapes and spaghetti, which are supposed to represent eyeballs + brains? Seattle's Witch Gardens take it one step further in their new vid for "Faith in Me," as they explore all the OTHER things you can do blindfolded, like ride a skateboard, or drive a car, or swing on a swingset. Exhibit:

"Faith in Me" will appear on the band's upcoming record I'd Rather Be Alone, out Spring 2013.


And Cloud Nothings decide to go the Slim Shady route for their new "Fall In" video, and find a whole bunch of ppl wearing the same outfit. In other news, Dylan Baldi with a beard looks suspiciously like my brother.

"Fall In" appears on the record Attack on Memory, out now.

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Haiku Review: Bleeding Rainbow

Guitars shred like fire

through the grungy haze;

melodies emerge

Bleeding harmonies (photo by Matt Davis)

Read the full review (Friday night, JB's) here.

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Cool / Lame: Hating Mumford & Sons

Cool: Admitting that yes, Mumford & Sons kinda suck

(+ apparently have the #1 record in the country. Just b/c)

Lame: Spending all your energy telling the world JUST HOW

 MUCH Mumford & Sons suck. (Consider: this tumblr). I mean...don't you have better things to do with your time?
 They're not the freakin' Dave Mathews Band!

Google image result #6 for "Mumford & Sons" suck.

This is a surprisingly fruitful search term.

NME ran an interesting piece on this topic the other week—apparently this is a real phenomenon! Def worth a read, if not just for an excellent Mumford-y gif.

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XPN2 Playlist, 10/8/12

6:00

The Soft Pack, "Chinatown"
Strapped

The Soft Boys, "Kingdom of Love"
Underwater Moonlight

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Chomp, "Throw Out Your Wish List"
Buddha Jabba Momma

Wipers, "Mystery"
Is This Real

Divine Fits, "What Gets You Alone"
A Thing Called Divine Fits

Smith Westerns, "All Die Young"

Dye It Blonde

Harlem, "Be Your Baby"

Hippies

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Turbo Fruits, "Where the Stars Don't Shine"

Butter

Sonic Youth, "Kissability"
Daydream Nation

King Tuff, "Losers Wall"
King Tuff

Dragonette, "Run Run Run"

Bodyparts

The Sounds, "24 Hours"

Dying to Say This to You

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Dum Dum Girls, "Seasons in Hell"
End of Daze

Jets to Brazil, "You're Having the Time of My Life"
Four-Cornered Night

The Smiths, "Asleep"

The World Won't Listen

Maritime, "Air Arizona"

Human Hearts

Sonny and the Sunsets, "Pretend You Love Me"

Hit After Hit

Google image result #3 for "Hit After Hit." Topically

appropriate, or too soon?

7:00

Menomena, "Don't Mess With Latexas"
Moms

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Savoir Adore, "Sea of Gold"

Dreamers

Tame Impala, "Endors Toi"
Lonerism

Cut Copy, "Blink and You'll Miss a Revolution"
Zonoscope

The Bastards of Fate, "Spaceheater"

Who's a Fuzzy Buddy?

Django Django, "Default"

Django Django

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The New Lows, "Stove"
Stove (Single)

PAWS, "Ariel"

My Parents Said We Can't See Each Other Anymore

The Thermals, "No Culture Icons"

More Parts Per Million

Woods, "Cali in a Cup"

Bend Beyond

Weezer, "Don't Let Go"
Weezer (Green Album)

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Wavves, "Mickey Mouse"
King of the Beach

The Little Ones, "Boracay"

Morning Tide

Passion Pit, "Little Secrets"

Manners

Mazes, "Cenetaph"
A Thousand Heys

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Mayer Hawthorne, "The Walk"
How Do You Do

Tune in again next for more sexy-sweet jamz.

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REBEL MONDAYS -- Getting Wild with Turbo Fruits + Divine Fits

Regular society, with its demanding jobs + expensive macchiatos, got u down? No kidding! Nashville punks Turbo Fruits explore life in the wild -- via whiskey-fueled hallucinations and a little help from Knight Rider -- in this new vid for "Where the Stars Don't Shine":

"Where the Stars Don't Shine" appears on the record Butter, out now (+ smooth as butter?) via Serpeants and Snakes.

And b/c the DB/ BD combo is simply too much to resist ...here's the (already much blogged about) new vid for Divine Fits' "Would That Not Be Nice":

"Would That Not Be Nice" appears on the record A Thing Called Divine Fits, out now.

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XPN2 Playlist, 10/1/12

Fall Vibes!

6:00

Woods, "Size Meets Sound"
Bend Beyond

Veronica Falls, "Bad Feeling"
Veronica Falls

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Cold Graves, "SVNTN"

SVNTN (Single)

The Soft Pack, "Bobby Brown"
Strapped

Nervous Curtains, "Wired to Make Waves"
Fake Infinity

Plateaus, "Blackout"

Plateaus

Yuck, "Operation"

Yuck

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Buke and Gase, "Misshaping Introduction"

Function Falls

Cold Showers, "Violent Cries"

Love and Regret

Chairlift, "Amanaemonesia"

Something

Savoir Adore, "Regalia"
Our Nature

Stars, "The Theory of Relativity (Diamond Rings Remix)"

The North

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Melody's Echo Chamber, "You Won't Be Missing That Part of Me"

Melody's Echo Chamber

Tame Impala, "Solitude Is Bliss"

InnerSpeaker

The Beatles, "I Am the Walrus"

Magical Mystery Tour

Google image result #5 for "I Am the Walrus." Clever.

7:00

Yeasayer, "2080"

All Hour Cymbals

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Sun Airway, "New Movements"
Soft Fall

Snowblink, "Unsurfed Waves"

Inner Classics

The Soft Moon, "Insides"

Zeros

Echo & The Bunnymen, "The Killing Moon"

Ocean Rain

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Unknown Mortal Orchestra, "Sleep and Swim (Like a Shark)"

Sleep and Swim (Like a Shark) (7")

The Olivia Tremor Control, "A New Day"

Black Foliage: Animation Music

Deep Time, "Horse"

Deep Time

Seapony, "Outside"
Falling

Chomp, "Standing to Fail"
Buddha Jabba Momma

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Jay Reatard, "It Ain't Gonna Save Me"
Watch Me Fall

The Exploding Hearts, "Modern Kicks"
Guitar Romantic

Oxford Collapse, "Electric Arc"

Bits

Neon Trees, "Everybody Talks"

Picture Show

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Reptar, "Houseboat Babies"

Body Faucuet

Tune in again next week for more sweet jamz!

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Music Video Mondays: Let's Get Weird! (with Nervous Curtains + Apollo Run)

Texas rockers Nervous Curtains offer the perfect visual complement to their nervy, spastic rock in this creepy,  Lynchian vid for "Wired to Make Waves":

"Wired to Make Waves" appears on the record Fake Infinity, out now.


And speaking of weird, this new Apollo Run video for "The Inevitable Small Rebellions" asks the burning question: what if 1984 were reimagined as a children's play, with the make-up artist from CATS on hand?

"The Inevitable Small Rebellions" appears on the record Here Be Dragons, Vol. III, out now.

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Best New Music: Melody's Echo Chamber

This has been basically my favorite thing these chilly early autumn days... and I have a feeling it will be getting more and more play in my iTunes as we delve further into fall. With warm melodies that swaddle you like a sweater -- and airy vocals that make you feel like you could float away to someplace warmer -- Melody Prochet totally brings it on her debut record as Melody's Echo Chamber.

Prochet, perhaps dreaming of Caribbean vacations?

Check out my full review over at Phrequency, and prepare to fall further in love with MEC.

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