Some Of The New Vibes

The newest and greatest bands that have fallen into my wondrous life:

Meligrove Band
-note to self: download album 'Planets Conspire' asap.

Tokyo Police Club
-is it just me, or is there just a liiiittttleee hint of Hellogoodbye to their sound? Whatever it is, I'm feeling it.

The Wombats
-a rockin Brit band. 'Let's Dance To Joy Division' is a must-hear.

Spoon
-definately diggin the vibes on their newest album 'Ga ga ga ga ga'

Locksley
-currently listening to snippets of their music via MTV commercials

Discovery
-an amazing unfinished project including the keyboarder of Vampire Weekend and the lead singer of Ra Ra Riot. Tis simply a r&b/techno MASTERPIECE.

Black Kids-Partie Traumatic

I became acquainted with this young group after reading a marvelous article about their album in Spin magazine, and my loving for them soon followed. The magazine raved that their debut album was quite the piece of art work and I, being the Spin-fanatic that I am, was sure to check them out. I instantly loved their sound once I was finished with "I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You," (also the band's first and most popular single) as it reminded me of something Cobra Starship would put out. Not only do both great bands have a knack for poppy-electro-rock, but they also have a lovely assortment of interesting song names (To name a few of Black Kids' and Cobra Starship's: "I Wanna Be Your Limousine," "My Moves Are White (White Hot, That Is)," and "Being From Jersey Means Never Having To Say You're Sorry"). However, it was Black Kids' "Love Me Already" that made me declare them one of my favorite new bands of the summer; the track's catchy chorus and 80's throw-back-synth sound had me chanting the words by the second half of the song. Most of the album reaches peaks of insane dance-potential, as where most of the slower songs aren't worth listening to more than a handful of times. Although "I'm Making Eyes At You" delivers a The Cure-esque sound which I'm sure most can enjoy. Overall, Black Kids produce a like-able album of which any Electro-Indie-Pop listener can groove along to.

Chromeo-Fancy Footwork

Chromeo is comprised of Dave 1 (lead singer/guitar) and P-Thugg (funky keyboarder) and they have without a doubt become my favorite find of the whole summer. Describing their sound as "Love making, Love breaking," they create electro-funk music that people of all age can enjoy and dance to. I downloaded their Fancy Footwork album after listening to "Bonafied Lovin" for about the millionth time and hearing that Vampire Weekend was a big fan of theirs. In one song, Dave 1 chants,"Your whole demeanor is outta sight," and ironically, Chromeo music itself can be referred to as such. "Bonafied Lovin," and "Opening Up (Ce Soir De Danse)," are without a doubt the biggest highlights of the album: they have the highest funk ability of any other tracks on Fancy Footwork. However, a few lackluster songs like "Waiting 4 U" and "Call Me Up" can damper a listeners funk-high. However, the rest of the album is amazing enough that you won't even mind a slow track every now and then. Overall, this record is surely one to be on repeat for at least a few years- maybe even one that teenagers of this generation can pass on to their children from music in the "good ole' days".

Goot ; The man is unsigned? MADNESS I say!

His name is Mister Alex Goot, and don't let his silly curly 'do and glasses fool you- the man's got mad talent. I stumbled across his Music Myspace page via a friend, and once I heard "Scared" I was hooked. His style is almost sickishly Pop-Rock, but for some reason I can tolerate it ... as long as it's coming from him. He hails from New York and is the phenomenon known as a one-man-band. That's right: he sits down and starts with the drums, lays a guitar over it, adds in some wicked piano keys, sings his *cough* self-written *cough* lyrics, and BAM! The song is in full fruition. Whether you dig his sugar music or not, you have to respect the fact that Sir Goot here is what I like to call a REAL musician (which is a major step up from those bubble-gum Pop Disney singers who seem to be racking up the record sales). But also, let me not fail to acknowledge the fact that he is currently unsigned - huge boo to you, major record corporations. The boy is adorable served on a stick! The teenagers no doubt will eat this stuff up! If music categorized as Pop is all we have to hear on the radio, why not as well throw some incredible talent in there? Even if it is sugary-sweet! Tisk tisk.

Vampire Weekend-Vampire Weekend.

Is there really even any need to discuss the amazingness that takes form in Indie band Vampire Weekend? Well, even though I can not properly speak for every other fan, I can personally say that yes, there is a need to talk about said amazingness. The boys formed while obtaining their undergraduate degrees at Columbia University and are sure to break the stereotype of the usual "MTV Featured Artist Of The Week". With Ezra Koenig on vocals/lead guitar, Chis Baio on bass, Rostam "Batman!" Batmanglij on keyboard, and Chris Tomson on drums, your ears are forced to soar on a relaxing Indie wave of goodness. With standout tracks like "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," (which Rolling Stone proclaimed #67 on the list of best songs of '07) "I Stand Corrected," "Oxford Comma," and "The Kids Don't Stand A Chance," on the record, the sing-along-ability level is set insanely high. Yet with other songs like "Walcott" and "A-Punk" -that contain guitar riffs that are sure to remain stuck in the back of a listener's mind for days at a time- the talent and knack for simple yet (gasp!) good songs is blatantly obvious. "One (Blake's Got A New Face)" samples from a genre very unlikely to come from an Indie rock back- African pop. However, the tasteful arrangements and bongos make it one of the most dance-able and unique tracks all at the same time- almost like a new wave Peter Gabriel that even most teenagers can enjoy. Overall, Vampire Weekend produces a likable, summer-friendly, African Pop inspired, 'prep pop' album, and is sure to leave any listener bouncing their head to the beat- whether they like it or not.

The current vibes ...

Let me first establish a few of the artists I am quite fond of:

Blake Lewis. Vampire Weekend. Chromeo. Lupe Fiasco. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah!. Chris Richardson. Maroon 5. John Mayer. John Legend. Amy Winehouse. Kate Nash. Lily Allen. Common. Blue Scholars. Journey. Michael Jackson. NERD. Jamiroquai. Robin Thicke. Common Market. Justin Timberlake. Cobra Starship. Jason Mraz. Ne-Yo. Earth, Wind & Fire. Radiohead. The Beatles. Usher. L'Homme Run. Keane. Hellogoodbye. Chris Brown. The Bravery. Gwen Stefani. The Killers. Black Eyed Peas. One Republic. Mark Ronson. Metro Station. Gym Class Heroes. Zapp & Roger. Depeche Mode. Will.i.am. The Cure. Seal. The National. Daft Punk. Yeasayer. Alicia Keys. U2. Justice. KJ Sawka. Coldplay. Mariah Carey. Arcade Fire. Fiona Apple. Jason Derulo. Cake. Carolina Liar. Metallica. Goot. Day 26. The Ting Tings. I hate to admit it but something I like teeny-bopper stuff like Jordin Sparks and Jesse McCartney. Paula Abdul. T-Pain. Lil Wayne. Blink-182. NSYNC. Ra Ra Riot. Janet Jackson. Weezer. Foo Fighters. Josiah Leming.

Hopefully this list will expand greatly!