Dance Dance Dance!!

So this past Tuesday featured a slew of new indie music being released, with two releases in particular that I was pretty excited about. First off was Yeasayer with their sophmore effort Odd Blood, which admittedly I was more excited about considering two of the songs from the record had been all over SiriusXMU for the last two months and both seemed to have the power to make me extremely happy every time I heard them. This quartet from Brooklyn has been around since 2006 and this follow up to their debut album was supposed to launch them into Indie Rock Stardom. The music on this record has some series pop undertones, but it is really just a good, down home dance record that some might go so far as to label electronic. The two highlights for me are Ambling Alp (check below) and O.N.E., and while the rest of the songs on the album were interesting in their own way, it must be said that the album as a whole did not live up to my admittedly high expectations. While it is upbeat and fun to listen to, after a few spins I feel that it is one that I won't be coming back to that often. I'm gonna give this album a 3.5, but it is a disappointing 3.5 as I was hoping for better.

Ambling Alp

The other big release of this week was Hot Chip with One Life Stand. I was first introduced to this band early last year by my friend Derek and have been hooked ever since. Their last album, Made in the Dark, was released towards the end of 2008 and it was one of my most played LPs of last year; every song on the album stands on its own, but together they provide an incredible music listening experience. This UK fivesome is electronic all the way, but not in the sense of trance or a European DJ; it is upbeat dance electronic that will keep you coming back for more. I was also a huge fan of their previous album, 2007's the Warning, so suffice it to say I also had pretty high expectations for this release. And even though they were a known commodity to me with a strong track record based upon the other two records I own, their new one still impressed in a big way. This record is a little more understated than their previous two; this is not a definitive dance record like the other two as it is a little less upbeat than the others. The title track is the one that was released to indie radio a few months ago, but the highlight for me is I Feel Better, the song that preceeds it on the album. It has a great back beat, a catchy hook and just makes you want to groove; after a handful of listens, this was the one song I kept wanting to come back to. Another highlight is track 5, Brothers, one of the slower and more simple songs on the record whose words will make you feel all warm and fuzzy. Now, if you were to see a picture of these guys your first thought would be "Nerd Alert", but in a classic case of not wanting to judge a book by its cover, their music will knock your socks off if you give it a chance. While my favorite record released thus far this year is Vampire Weekend's Contra, this one is a close second and I am going to give it an enthusiastic 4.5. You'll find two songs below by these guys, the first is my favorite from this week's release and the other is my favorite from The Warning.

I Feel Better

No Fit State