Joy Formidable Prove That Emo Noise Can Be Epic

• The Joy Formidable - The Big Roar (Canvasblack/Atlantic) [thejoyformidable.com]



The Big Roar -
Order the import here

• Female lead vocals (except for one track), winding lyrics, plenty of layered guitars, impressive drumming and emotive synths. Flirts with shoegaze but tries hard to never be dull. It's the opposite of dull.
• Formed in '07 from members of Sidecar Kisses. This is apparently their second full-length album.
• If noise pop has a loud, British emo-punk side, this might just be it. And this time I mean that in a really good way. I'm super impressed. I even love the cover art.
• At fifty minutes, a very long album, but worth the time. The opening track is nearly eight minutes long, but it never gets boring, not once. "Epic" seems to be what they're aiming for.
• Unfortunately, this is an import for those of us in the States until March 15th, when it will finally be released here. I think it will be worth the wait unless you can manage to find it somewhere.
• Looks like you can buy the MP3s at their own site here, assuming they take American dollars. Looks like you have to "join" their Web site, though.
• This rockin' trio from North Wales is touring Europe from now into March, and then they're coming to the States for the whole of April. They'll be at The Basement in Columbus on April 4th.

This live recording actually gives a very good sense of how this record sounds. In a word: Damn.

The Joy Formidable - "A Heavy Abacus" (First You Have to Get Mad live album; recorded at the London Garage, 9/30/2009)

I'm an Unashamed Cloud Nothings Fan

• Cloud Nothings - S/T LP (Wichita/Carpark) [MySpace]



Cloud Nothings -
Download here

• Released today in the UK and tomorrow here in the U.S.A.
• Fantastic noise pop/punk that could also fall in the power-pop category. Great hang-out, feel-good songs with catchy melodies and infectious, grinding noise.
• I met leader Dylan Baldi here in Columbus very recently. He's a really nice kid and very talented. I'll be able to say "I met him when..." when he makes it big in a few years.
• He played all the instruments on this album. Very well, too. And his voice is fun to listen to.
• This is CN's first full-length, the follow-up to their Turning On EP released in the fall.
• I played their tune "Should Have" on the latest episode of the 8-Tracks Fierce radio show, and today there's a video for that song on Pitchfork. It's funny and gross.
• The new album is streaming here for free. You should definitely check it out if you haven't heard it yet. And be sure to catch them on tour if you can; their live act blew me away.

This video will give you a taste for their live sound. This was in their hometown of Cleveland last month. This is the second song on the new album.

Cloud Nothings - "Not Important" (Beachland Cavern, Cleveland; 12/18/2010)

Wizard Oz Bring a Noise-Pop Feast For the Ears

• Wizard Oz - Flower Days (Beko) [Angelfire]



Flower Days - Download here

• Grainy keyboard pop with harmonized, reverb-heavy male vocals and spare use of guitar in most of their tracks. 
• Very nice. Parts of it sound like they came from a video game, but not in a way that distracts from the songs, which are pretty good.
• Duo from Fitzroy, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne.
• Beko's fourth full-length release and at least the third for Wizard Oz. They have two full-length albums from 2010 streaming on BandCamp.
• Pretty good stuff, especially for free! About as good as keyboard pop gets, in my opinion.

I wanted to stream a track with plenty of guitar, so this is not quite representative of the whole album, but I dig it.

Wizard Oz - "Horse Tails" (Flower Days; 1/24/2011)

Triumph of Lethargy Sound Upset in a Good Way

• Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive to Death - Some of Us Are In This Together (Don't Stop Believin') [MySpace]



Some of Us Are In This Together -
Download here

• Spare, slow, poetic art punk. Noisy guitars and angry vocals. Nine long, aching tracks and one short one.
• The sixth full album from this quartet from Seattle.
• Pretty cool. Kind of like Bailter Space at half speed.
• The drummer is Andrea Zollo from Pretty Girls Make Graves, and she contributes some vocals, too.
• Streaming at their MySpace here.

Here's an interesting video (see here for how it was made).

Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive to Death - "The Dirty Street" (Some of Us Are In This Together; 1/18/2011)

White Fence Blows My Ever-Lovin' Mind

• White Fence - Is Growing Faith (Woodsist) [Blogspot]



Is Growing Faith - Download here

• Holy crap. I didn't know what to expect. This is amazing.
• Another Tim Presley (Darker My Love, The Strange Boys) project.
• Timeless noisy So-Cal garage psych-rock. Fun with tape effects, an instrument I can't quite identify...just wow.
• A long-ish album at 46 1/2 minutes. Sixteen tracks, and all are whoppers.
• Cover art by Presley himself.
• Incredible album. Words can't express how cool it is (not any better than other blogs do so, anyway). Just get it and listen.

If you're not convinced, here's a track that sounds like Part 2 of the track that came before ("Your Last Friend Alive"), but much noisier and more psyched-out. This is one of the noise-poppiest tracks on the album. "Harness" is a really good one, too. This here is another 8-Tracks Fierce exclusive.

White Fence - "Enthusiasm" (Is Growing Faith; 1/18/2011)

Pollard's Still Rockin' It

• Robert Pollard - Space City Kicks (Guided By Voices, Inc) [robertpollard.net]



Space City Kicks -
Download here

• A father of noise pop/rock, who brought us Guided By Voices, now brings us his twentieth solo album, by my count, and it's a killer. Gnarly but artful noise punk from a master.
• His fifth full album on his own GBV label, started in 2008. This one has eighteen tracks, but only one is more than three minutes long. Total length is only 36 minutes.
• Looks like the physical release was put off a week, but you can download the MP3s now.
• Has to be one of the most prolific recording artists of the last five years. He put out two full albums in 2006, three in '07, two in '08, two in '09 and two in 2010!
• Still lives in Dayton, OH, and was inducted into his high school's hall of fame last year for excellence in football, baseball and basketball! He threw the first no-hitter in the history of Wright State University, where I worked a few years ago.
• Probably won't make anyone's top-ten list for the year, but it's a good listen. I'm happy to have it in my rotation.

The opening track is what really grabbed me (and not just because it looks like a Fantastic Four reference), so here it is. Very strange video, but I can dig it. Unfortunately, the whole album is not this psychedelic and interesting, but it's good.

Robert Pollard - "Mr. Fantastic Must Die" (Space City Kicks; 1/18/2011)

F&G: Possibly the Best Garage-Psych of 2011?

• Fergus & Geronimo - Unlearn (Hardly Art) [MySpace]



Unlearn - Download here

• Thirty minutes of noisy, sometimes minimalist garage-psych. Very cool. Lots of variety on this, their first full-length album. Not for the kids due to some language and sexual themes.
• Includes flute, organ and sax. All instruments are played skillfully by this duo from Denton, TX, and their friends. No, Fergus and Geronimo are not their real names.
• Bold and not afraid to make whatever sound comes to their hearts, whether classic or innovative. This is true rock-'n'-roll, and it's now, man.

I couldn't find this track online anywhere, so this is an 8-Tracks Fierce exclusive. Good stuff.

Fergus & Geronimo - "The World Never Stops" (Unlearn; 1/18/2011)