GRNDMS

“Capitol Mill is proof that sunny little songs need not be mindless nonsense, and that you don’t need to write explicitly sad songs to resonate with the listener” – we reviewed the début album from GRNDMS, out now on Fox Food Records.

Eskimeaux

“About doing the best you can and hoping it’s enough, about accepting and learning and growing so that whatever hand you’re dealt, you carve out some semblance of meaning and happiness to make everything worthwhile” – Eskimeaux’s O.K., out now on Double Double Whammy and Mt. Home Arts, is a triumphant success.

Peptalk

“Peptalk paint ecosystems, thriving arrangements of geology and biology where plants and animals and wind and rain follow their own instinctive patterns. However, things are not quite what they seem…” – We welcomed you to the weird and beautiful world of Peptalk’s Islet.

Craig Finn

“Finn’s sharp turn of phrase… elevates mundane situations to something meaningful, transforming everyday words and imagery into things imbued with symbolism” – the first song from a new album by The Hold Steady’s Craig Finn.

Henoheno

“Emotional suffering is presented in a detached manner, as if the narrator has transcended into an outer body experience or else knows the pain so well it lacks the immediacy it once possessed” – we were delighted to premiere ‘Destroy’, the first track from Henoheno’s upcoming album I Made These Songs Before I Moved.

Kalle Mattson

“Strummed guitars and slow-burning drum machine beats which conjure a vivid, nostalgic image, like a city as seen from a dark shore at night” – ‘A Long Time Ago’, a new song from Kalle Mattson’s upcoming EP Avalanche.

PONY

“Sun-kissed and salt-lipped… four songs about romance and break-ups during the summer months” – we reviewed CRUSHED, the debut EP from Toronto band PONY.

Old Earth

“[Milwaukee] completely shaped and nurtured me. I grew up and spent most of my life here, so going from being a teenager seeing punk shows in VFW halls in the early ’90s to being an artist that some people know and read about in the city is kind of crazy” – Old Earth spoke to Milwaukee Record about the pros and cons of moving to California.

Kathryn Joseph

“I never felt like we were making something beautiful. I just thought my songs were shit, and that this is all really embarrassing” – Kathryn Joseph spoke to The Skinny before winning Scottish Album of the Year award for Bones You Have Thrown Me and Blood I’ve Spilled. We reviewed the album here, and certainly aren’t surprised.

Joseph also unveiled a new song, ‘the worm’, via The Line of Best Fit.

Jenny Hval

I feel a little intimidated at the prospect of writing about Apocalypse, girl, the new album from Jenny Hval. Luckily there are already some great reviews out there, we particularly liked these from The Quietus and God is in the TV.

Crosslegged

“In the past, my summers have been defined by the artists that manage to capture the heaviness of a muggy afternoon or the confusing side of a fleeting romance. I know Speck will be a record that falls into that special category for me this year” – The Le Sigh are streaming Speck by Keba Robinson’s Crosslegged.

Naps

“Finding out about Naps felt like being told a really good secret” – understanding that there can never be enough quality new music, The Le Sigh also premièred a new song from Florida band Naps (who we have featured on numerous occasions).

Frog

“Irreverent, strange and just a little addictive” – Clash premiered a video for Frog’s ‘Judy Garland’. ICYMI, we reviewed (and loved) Kind of Blah and spoke to Frog about their music.

Titus Andronicus

Titus Andronicus have released Sorry About the Delay, a mix of demos, rarities and unheard album cuts in preparation for the forthcoming album The Most Lamentable Tragedy. Pitchfork have all the details, including the link for a free download.

Strand of Oaks

“Filled with bite and sometimes regret, but also a good deal of warmth” – The indomitable Timothy Showalter visited NPR’s Tiny Desk Sessions. We have written about Strand of Oaks quite a bit, but probably still haven’t conveyed how much we love Showalter’s work.

And… our favourite 8tracks playlist of the week was this one by beneller (that cover art!!)

the ultimate summer playlist from beneller on 8tracks Radio.

The post Week in Review: #6 (15th – 19th June) appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Robyn + Röyksopp – Do It Again

“I don’t like clubs. When I was 18 I went to Zoo Bar in Leicester Square and a complete stranger told me I was ‘killing the mood’. But if I could be converted to sweating it out with a bunch of strangers on a dancefloor, it might be by the likes of Robyn and Röyksopp on their deceptively massive EP, Do It Again. Röyksopp’s contribution is carnal, dynamic and richly textured, while Robyn brings her signature melancholy, dressed in a ‘don’t give a fuck’ bright pop sheen. I don’t think I could ask for much more.” Dave

Adult Mom – Sometimes Bad Happens [Full Review]

“It has been a vintage year for bedroom artists, with some of my favourite releases coming from the small tape labels. Adult Mom’s Sometimes Bad Happens is one I found myself returning to, an EP that tackles big ingrained problems like depression and male attitudes towards women in grounded, relatable songs. By refusing to be just happy or sad or angry, Adult Mom paints complex characters that are a little bit of everything, a messy tangle that looks a lot like life.” Jon

Talons’ – Lost Summer [Full Review]

“How can you not love an EP that begins with the line “I wanted to change the world, but I ended up doing nothing all day”? Folk music but not as we know it, Talons’ replace bar brawls and heartache with the vague sense of sadness at the core of contemporary society. Perhaps, a hundred years from now, Smithsonian Folkways will hold the mp3s locked in a vault somewhere, an illustration of the millennial angst felt by a generation at the turn of the twenty-first century. People of the future will ask their grandparents about iPhones and Breaking Bad and this business with the planes.” Liam

Timecop1983 – Waves

“There is a glut of 80s-retro-synthwave-nostalgia music around at the moment, and not all of it is good. By definition, this kind of stuff tends towards the derivative and generic. So I thought I’d give some credit to Timecop1983’s Waves EP. It’s a collection of five inventive and catchy synthwave tracks, that manages to escape from simply being a genre piece. It’s not too serious, but is extremely well put together, and the most fun I’ve had listening to anything this year.” Matt

Jon Hopkins – Asleep Versions

“The scope of Jon Hopkins delivery continues to impress me. With Immunity, he produced one of 2013’s most impressively textured and considered releases. His eye for detail made it essential that you immersed yourself in the album to really appreciate every little nuance and affectation. With Asleep Versions, Jon Hopkins goes back to basics, revisiting four of Immunity’s highlights and dismantling and reimagining them. It’s the King Creosote version of Immunity that truly captivates me. It’s utterly heartbreaking.” Will

The post Wake The Deaf’s Top EPs of 2014 appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Tracklisting

1. Saturday Night – The Wooden Sky
2. Wings – Field Report
3. Infestation – Bear Medicine
4. Cigarettes – Oquoa
5. Chris Bell – M. Lockwood Porter
6. Ride On, Molina – Rivulets
7. Farewell Transmission – Songs: Ohia
8. HSKT – Sylvan Esso
9. Reconstruct (feat. Seafloor) – Photay
10. Second Night – Mansionair
11. Beacon – DEAREST
12. Sweetness – Wayne Szalinksi
13. Yellow Leaves – Ezkiel
14. Travel Advisory – Baby Mollusk
15. ESRT (2001) – Whatever, Dad
16. Black Kettle – Real Life Buildings
17. Six Dollar Sunglasses – Steve Palmer
18. I Have Heard of a Land – C.Strøm
19. Blue Ridge Mountain Blues – Wes Tirey
20. Breaking Bad – Talons’
21. Raft – Sarah Winchester
22. Ontario Gothic – Foxes in Fiction
23. Thrown – Kiasmos
24. You (Nate Connelly Rework) – Nils Frahm
25. Form By Firelight (With Raphaelle Standell) – Jon Hopkins
26. Lights – Mt. Judge
27. I Love – David Karsten Daniels

Remember that we make a mix like this every month, so if you want even more cool new music then head over to the Wake the Deaf 8tracks page, or read the site itself!

October 2014 Mix from Wake The Deaf on 8tracks Radio.

The post October 2014 Roundup – A Mixtape appeared first on Various Small Flames.

15). Kanye West – Yeezus

(Roc-A-Fella / Def Jam)

14). Implodes – Recurring Dream

(Kranky)

13). Vampire Weekend – Modern Vampires of the City

(XL)

12). Julia Holter – Loud City Song

(Domino)

11). John Moreland – In The Throes

(Last Chance)

10). Trouble Books – Love At Dusk 

(MIE)

9). Darkside – Psychic

(Matador / Other People)

8). Mount Kimbie – Cold Spring Fault Less Youth

(Warp)

7). Jon Hopkins – Immunity

(Domino)

6). Phosphorescent – Muchacho

(Dead Oceans)

5). The Knife – Shaking the Habitual

(Mute / Brille / Rabid)

4). Fuck Buttons – Slow Focus

(ATP)

3). Typhoon – White Lighter

(Roll Call)

2). Chance the Rapper – Acid Rap

(Self-released)

1). The National – Trouble Will Find Me

(4AD)

The post Wake the Deaf’s Top 15 Albums of 2013 appeared first on Various Small Flames.