Deerhunter
Microcastle / Weird Era Continued
Kranky

Earlier this year frontman Bradford Cox revealed his poppier side with a release as Atlas Sound. Split into two discs, the Microcastle half of this release seems to follow what was established on the Atlas Sound record. Weird Era Continued, however, is a more natural progression, falling somewhere between the noise of Cryptograms and Atlas Sound’s more melodic slant. The mildly nihilistic tone of Microcastle sees a shimmering instrumental opener give way to “Agoraphobia”, in which Cox sings plaintively about a desire to be imprisoned. Conversely, Weird  opens with the rather sleek and Interpol-like “Backspace Century” before shifting into the very catchy “Operation”. Instrumentals like ”Weird Era” and “Slow Swords” return to the droning soundscapes of Cryptograms but are more engaging. Whether this release is to be interpreted as a double album or two single albums packaged together is ambiguous, though the albums are linked by a sharing of the song ”Calvary Scars”; on Microcastle as a brief interlude, and as a powerful ten-minute finale on Weird. It does feel a lot like the Bradford Cox Show and Microcastle especially is hard to differentiate from Atlas Sound, but nonetheless Deerhunter have released two consistently excellent albums here. Bow down, peasants: Deerhunter are indie rock royalty.

The Rapture
Tapes 
!K7 

When I heard that The Rapture came out with the new album Tapes, I was excited to say the least. But my excitement soon turned to disappointment when I realized that instead of some new studio material, it was merely a glorified mix tape of music from other artists compiled by the band. But as I put on my headphones and pressed play, my disappointment quickly turned to joy and I found myself lost in the musical journey that is Tapes.

Starting with the all too brief opener “Earthquake Shake” by 70’s psychedelic soul quintet The Undisputed Truth, Tapes is a collection of classic grooves and rare gems from the late 70’s to ‘08 blended into an 80-minute party-friendly mix of funky house music, disco, electronica and hip hop.

From the funky roller disco grooves of the Bar-Kays‘ ”Holy Ghost” to the electro fuelled “Where’s Jason K” by Syclops, and stand out tracks by Ghostface Killah, Armand Van Helden, DJ Mujava, Paul Johnson (anyone remember the late 90s club hit “Get Get Down”?) and Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangaltar, Tapes has the potential to provide a soundtrack for pre-club drinks on a Friday night or a lazy Sunday afternoon with friends. That said, it works just as well on a quiet night at home with a glass of red wine, a dark room and a pair of headphones.

Bang! Bang! Eche!
s/t

The music of this five-piece electro-pop-indie-rock band from Christchurch, New Zealand grabbed my attention immediately, with shouty vocals and dance-punk synth stabs. Though this band is better known for noise-filled, high energy shows than recordings, this 5 song EP (which includes the hits “4 to the Floor” and “Time Mismanagement”) captures their live energy well and opens up the lyrics, revealing something clever and seemingly much more mature than the band looks. Or maybe I’m just getting old (?). For me, BBE sound like a junior version of genre favorites The Rapture, Moving Units and !!! – but with a lot more pop.

Crystal Stilts
Alight of Night
Slumberland 

Alight of Night is the debut album by Brooklyn’s Crystal Stilts. The huge amount of recent buzz about Crystal Stilts is well-deserved; they have a unique sound that blends minimal post-punk (Velvets go to Dunedin by way of Manchester) with a classicist guitar twang and radiant pop appeal that would not sound out of place on an early Mary Chain b-side. Way more than just a sum of cool influences, the Stilts have managed to forge something new and vital from timeless chunks of rock’s primordial source material. Alight of Night is a brilliant album full of mystery, fuzz, croon, twang, throb and oh those tunes. An absolute corker.
www.crystalstilts.com

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The Chemistry of Common Life, the band’s first release on Matador Records, is the bravest and most interesting take on hardcore in years. Rather than following the genres typical rules and tools of beatdowns and stolen Converge riffs, Fucked Up have made an album full of innovation. There are organs and wind instruments alongside guitars and drums, and female singers drifting above vocalist Pink Eyes’ gruff and abrasive tones. This is one of the most inventive punk albums I have heard since Refused came out with The Shape Of Punk To Come.

Genre: Hardcore/Punk