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DNTEL
Life Is Full of Possibilities

Dntel comforts himself by combining melancholy melodies with an assortment of electronic production styles, as well as enlisting friends to add vocals and guitar on some tracks. The result is made of inspired minimal techno-to-pop songs buried in static, cut-up acoustic guitars, sampled symphonies struggling to find somewhere to settle, found sound and blissed-out drones. Life Is Full of Possibilities includes vocal contributions from Chris Gunst (Beachwood Sparks), Mia Doi Todd, Meredith Figurine, Rachel Haden, and Benjamin Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), plus guitar by Paul Larson (Athalia) and Brian McMahan (Slint).

ARTIST: Dntel
TITLE: Life Is Full of Possibilities
LABEL: Plug Research
RELEASE DATE: October 30, 2001
TIME: 54:49 min.
WEB: http://www.dntelmusic.com/

01. Umbrella [04:43]
02. Anywhere Anyone [04:37]
03. Pillowcase [03:30]
04. Fear of Corners [05:26]
05. Suddenly Is Sooner Than You Think [05:44]
06. Life Is Full of Possibilities [06:30]
07. Why I’m So Unhappy [07:00]
08. Fireworks [06:48]
09. (this is) The Dream of Evan and Chan [05:45]
10. Last Songs [04:45]

Dntel (feat. Ben Gibbard) – (this is) The Dream of Evan and Chan

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THE NEW DIVISION
Shadows

The New Division has been one of the finds of 2011. Shadows is simply made of one great tune after another, drawing from Joy Divison, New Order (find the mash-up in the name of the band), Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, early Fixx (the more you listen, the more bits and pieces of bands from that era you’ll heard) to create a sound all their own.
A neo-new-wave that is as immaculate as it is addictive.

ARTIST: The New Division
TITLE: Shadows
LABEL: Division
RELEASE DATE: November 27, 2011
TIME: 60:59 min.
WEB: http://www.thenewdivision.net/

01. Opium [05:20]
02. Shallow Play [03:58]
03. Sense [05:01]
04. Shadows [00:45]
05. Violent [04:27]
06. Soft [03:49]
07. Munich [04:25]
08. True Lies [06:37]
09. LA Noire [00:41]
10. Hearts for Sale [05:33]
11. Special [04:49]
12. Memento [08:48]
13. Shadows II [01:10]
14. Saturday Night [05:36]

The New Division – Opium

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KATE WAX
Dust Collision

Second album of avant-garde electronic pop from the Swiss-Tibetan singer-songwriter and producer Kate Wax, mixed by Border Community boss James Holden. Dust Collision is beautifully composed, gracefully crossing genre boundary lines without ever sounding false or forced: its colours constantly shift and become surprisingly delightful.

ARTIST: Kate Wax
TITLE: Dust Collision
LABEL: PID
RELEASE DATE: November 22, 2011
TIME: 59:55 min.
WEB: http://www.kate-wax.com/

01. I Knit You [05:58]
02. Dancing On Your Scalp [03:57]
03. Human Twin [04:29]
04. Archetype [03:20]
05. Maze Rider (live from the cave) [04:23]
06. For A Shadow [06:05]
07. Dust Collision [04:30]
08. Echoes and the Light [05:18]
09. Green Machine [05:17]
10. Holy Beast [06:18]
11. Mad Thinker Get Out of My Skin [04:51]
11. Les Djinns [05:29]

Kate Wax – Holy Beast (james holden woolly beast edit)

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VIDEO OF THE WEEK – #83
as seen on radioSpin

ARTIST: Justice
TITLE: Civilization
ALBUM: Audio Video Disco
WEB: YouTube

directed by Edouard Salier

AEROC
R+B=?

Geoff White’s work as Aeroc occupies a rarified air in which the surreal nature of dreams and the rhythms of everyday waking existence merge to create an unexpectedly naturalistic form of electronic music: harmonized drones merge with graceful jazz patterns and glitch-inspired rhythms to make a sound that is totally his own. White released the first Aeroc album, Viscous Solid, on 2004, creating a dense world of atmospherics drawn wholly from treatments of his own guitar lines, a fact that is a testament to his mastery of sound formation and manipulation. Having relocated to Barcelona from the American Midwest while creating the album, one can understand why White’s musical moods are so dichotomous, as the uncertainty of a new place meshes with the sheer joy of discovery and personal cultivation, backed by the underlying ebb and flow of the patterns that govern our lives. Aeroc’s long-awaited LP R+B=? continues down the same melodic path as it’s predecessor but imbues it with a new verve for funk and beats that brings the Aeroc project from conceptual event to artistic enterprise in one fell swoop.

ARTIST: Aeroc
TITLE: R+B=?
LABEL: Ghostly International
RELEASE DATE: December 13, 2011
TIME: 47:45 min.
WEB: http://www.myspace.com/editaudio

01. Spaced Out [04:19]
02. If I Had the Time [03:39]
03. Soflo [06:21]
04. Lude [00:45]
05. Playing String [04:00]
06. For Sake [05:16]
07. It Does Easy [03:17]
08. You Say That [06:00]
09. Avalon Blonde [03:31]
10. Some Kisses [06:52]
11. All For Now [03:45]

Aeroc – Spaced Out

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LAURA
Twelve Hundred Times

Laura are a five-piece alternative outfit from Melbourne formed in 2001. Whilst the band has been through some experimentation in line up and direction of sound. The release of Mapping Your Dreams in 2004 was a breakthrough for Laura as it garnered attention from independent radio stations around the country. Now they have released their third studio album Twelve Hundred Times: the tracks collide between sparse, acoustic, alien, interwoven tones and shapes to sonic wail, digital implants, discordant resonances that jar and irate, please and soothe the listeners senses all at once.

ARTIST: Laura
TITLE: Twelve Hundred Times
LABEL: PID
RELEASE DATE: October 25, 2011
TIME: 44:07 min.
WEB: http://www.wearemappingyourdreams.com/

01. Visitor [07:10]
02. This Grey Earth [05:06]
03. Gravity Hill [02:18]
04. Mark the Day [06:08]
05. Glint [02:44]
06. x1200 [00:51]
07. Stone Seed [04:33]
08. Fugue State [02:29]
09. The Slow [05:51]
10. Safe Confinement [01:01]
11. New Safe Confinement [05:06]

Laura – Stone Seed

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MR. OIZO
Stade 2

“I don’t know what it is exactly, but I love it”: and with that rather honest proclamation does Stade 2 begin, another drug-induced and psychotic chapter in the kaleidoscopic and perplexing saga that is the life and times of one Quentin Dupieux. And perhaps that statement is the most accurate summation of Mr. Oizo’s music, as his music really does seem to exist in its own little world, devoid of proper declaration or documentation. And yet he represents possibly the most definitive and distinct meaning of the term electro with his harsh and biting take on French house, with his snub-nosed beats and cascading sheets of electronic rain battering against each other like a rave nightmare, only occasionally finding themselves broken in two by some idiosyncratic expression or another.

ARTIST: Mr. Oizo
TITLE: Stade 2
LABEL: Ed Banger
RELEASE DATE: December 27, 2011
TIME: 32:27 min.
WEB: http://www.myspace.com/oizo3000

01. Introeil [00:54]
02. Camel Fuck [03:25]
03. Douche Beat [03:19]
04. Datsun [03:19]
05. Ska [03:03]
06. Edn [01:05]
07. Cheeree [03:10]
08. Oral Sax [02:05]
09. France 7 [03:39]
10. Chiffon [01:55]
11. Pompe [00:57]
12. Stade 2 [03:04]
13. Druide [03:08]

Mr. Oizo – Datsun

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JAPE
Ocean of Frequency

Fourth album from the Irish band Jape, a very worthy follow up to 2008′s Ritual. Ocean of Frequency may feel like a departure from their previous material, but it opens itself up to repeated listens and reveals that it has retained, and indeed enhanced, the qualities which have made Jape such an interesting band in the first place. Jape‘s music is made of somewhat spacey songs that border on dance and has been described as mixing electronica with stoner folk, that means essentially nothing. So, what’s better than take a listen and decide by yourself?

ARTIST: Jape
TITLE: Ocean of Frequency
LABEL: 101
RELEASE DATE: October 25, 2011
TIME: 43:24 min.
WEB: http://japemusic.com/

01. An Hallucination [00:54]
02. Please Don’t Turn the Record Off [03:22]
03. The Oldest Mind [04:58]
04. Too Many People [03:55]
05. One of Those Days That Just Feels So Long [03:26]
06. Borrowed Time with Peace [04:57]
07. Scorpio [03:46]
08. You Make the Love [03:14]
09. Internal Machine [03:48]
10. Its Shadow Won’t Make Noise [05:16]
11. Nanoitanicullah [00:53]
12. Ocean of Frequency [04:55]

Jape – Scorpio

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DILLON
This Silence Kills

Please let comparisons (Björk, Camille and so on) aside. The Berlin-based artist Dillon (Dominique Dillon de Byington her full name) has hit the nail on the head with this delightfully different debut album This Silence Kills, which is covered with her astounding voice for starters and the production also happens to be top notch. It has a wintry vibe going on in the best way and we defy you not to have your heart melted to this pleasant listening experience.

ARTIST: Dillon
TITLE: This Silence Kills
LABEL: B-Pitch Control
RELEASE DATE: November 28, 2011
TIME: 42:59 min.
WEB: http://www.dillon-music.com/

01. The Silence Kills [04:18]
02. Tip Tapping [03:07]
03. Thirteen Thirtyfive [03:43]
04. Your Flesh Against Mine [04:30]
05. You Are My Winter [04:22]
06. Undying Need to Scream [02:16]
07. ______________ [04:53]
08. From One to Six Hundred Kilometers [03:39]
09. Hey Beau [02:35]
10. Texture of My Blood [02:34]
11. Gumache [02:57]
12. Abrupt Clarity [04:05]

Dillon – Gumache

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VIDEO OF THE WEEK – #82
as seen on radioSpin

ARTIST: Drew Smith
TITLE: Love Teeth
ALBUM: The Secret Languages
WEB: YouTube

directed by Sohee Jeon

KORALLREVEN
An Album by Korallreven

Debut full-length from Swedish electro-pop duo: after their introduction to the world through the singles The Truest Faith and Honey Mine, the partnership of Marcus Joons and Daniel Tjäder (also of The Radio Dept.) presents its debut album, An Album By Korallreven, which features contributions from Taken by Trees‘ Victoria Bergsman and Julianna Barwick.

ARTIST: Korallreven
TITLE: An Album by Korallreven
LABEL: Acephale
RELEASE DATE: November 15, 2011
TIME: 44:52 min.
WEB: http://www.myspace.com/korallrevenmusic

01. As Young As Yesterday [05:46]
02. Sa Sa Samoa [04:05]
03. The Truest Faith [04:26]
04. Keep Your Eyes Shut [03:28]
05. Loved-Up [03:54]
06. Comin’ Closer [04:34]
07. Pago Pago [02:46]
08. Honey Mine [04:34]
09. A Surf On Endorphins [02:19]
10. Comin’ Down [09:00]

Korallreven – The Truest Faith

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65DAYSOFSTATIC
Silent Running

65daysofstatic project a modern soundtrack to Douglas Trumbull‘s 1972 sci-fi classic Silent Running. Originally commissioned by Glasgow Film Festival at the beginning of 2011 as a live re-score performed by the band, this project has grown into something much bigger than anybody had ever anticipated and now has become a whole record of brand new 65 material.

ARTIST: 65daysofstatic
TITLE: Silent Running
LABEL: Dustpunk
RELEASE DATE: November 14, 2011
TIME: 43:59 min.
WEB: http://www.65daysofstatic.com/

01. Overture [02:28]
02. Space Theme [02:08]
03. The Announcement [03:10]
04. Safe Distancing [04:49]
05. The Scattered Disk [03:27]
06. Burial Scene [04:36]
07. Broken Ship Ruse [06:02]
08. Surgery [02:30]
09. Space Montage [06:19]
10. Rantaloupe [03:50]
11. Finale [04:40]

65daysofstatic – Space Theme

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SNOW PATROL
Fallen Empires

Fallen Empires is the sixth studio album from Snow Patrol: the album was recorded in the iconic The Joshua Tree National Park in south-eastern California. In October 2010, the band drove out into the desert with their guitars and one or two rough song ideas. A week later, their writing session at Rancho De La Luna Studios had laid the foundations of the tracks that would comprise Fallen Empires. Over several months, the five piece (singer Gary Lightbody, guitarist Nathan Connolly, bassist Paul Wilson, drummer Jonny Quinn and keyboardist, Tom Simpson) began a musical road trip around California. They recorded tracks at Eagles Watch, a topsy turvy house in Santa Monica with widescreen windows and panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean. Backing vocals were drawn from the LA Inner City Mass Gospel Choir in Compton, south central LA. Later, tracks were mixed at the studio owned by longterm collaborator, Garret “Jacknife” Lee (a hacienda tucked away in Topanga Canyon, the one time hippy commune and former home to Neil Young and Woody Guthrie). The result is an album that promises to redefine the band as an altogether more ambitious, more expansive, creative force.

ARTIST: Snow Patrol
TITLE: Fallen Empires
LABEL: Fiction
RELEASE DATE: November 14, 2011
TIME: 57:17 min.
WEB: http://www.snowpatrol.com/

01. I’ll Never Let Go [04:43]
02. Called Out in the Dark [04:02]
03. The Weight of Love [04:16]
04. This Isn’t Everything You Are [04:58]
05. The Garden Rules [04:28]
06. Fallen Empires [05:20]
07. Berlin [03:53]
08. Lifening [03:53]
09. New York [04:02]
10. In the End [04:00]
11. Those Distant Bells [03:18]
12. The President [06:06]
13. The Symphony [04:35]
14. Broken Bottles from a Star (prelude) [01:32]

Snow Patrol – Lifening

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BYETONE
Symeta

Triumphant return to Raster Noton for Byetone, with his first release since his brilliant, name-making Death Of A Typographer. Seven tracks to get your teeth into here, and the most impressive expression yet of this artist’s sleek, dark-hearted techno-not-techno sound. Absolute quality.

ARTIST: Byetone
TITLE: Symeta
LABEL: Raster Norton
RELEASE DATE: November 8, 2011
TIME: 46:29 min.
WEB: http://www.myspace.com/benderbyetone

01. Topas [06:12]
02. T-E-L-E-G-R-A-M-M [07:15]
03. Neuschnee [07:07]
04. Opal [06:59]
05. Helix [05:05]
06. Black Peace [07:41]
07. Golden Elegy [06:10]

Byetone – Helix

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FRED FALKE
Part IV

Fred Falke’s long awaited debut album Part IV is ready and the good news folks is that it’s definitely worth the wait. You may or may not be familiar with the many quality remixes that Mr. Falke has produced for artists such as Sia, Metronomy, Lykke Li, U2, Annie, Gossip, Grizzly Bear, Ladyhawke, Little Boots, and many many more (the list literally goes on and on for the number of great remixes he has produced): the chances are that you will have heard one of his mixes somewhere over recent months even if you didn’t realise it. Now Part IV is the album that we’ve been looking forward to since Fred Falke first hit the remix scene and this one has not disappointed us.

ARTIST: Fred Falke
TITLE: Part IV
LABEL: Work It Baby
RELEASE DATE: December 2, 2011
TIME: 72:48 min.
WEB: http://www.myspace.com/fredfalkemusic

01. 808 PM at the Beach [06:30]
02. Back to Stay [08:11]
03. Last Wave [08:46]
04. Electricity [03:24]
05. Omega Man [06:16]
06. Bar Knuckle [05:39]
07. Aurora [07:54]
08. Chicago [06:33]
09. Wait For Love [05:59]
10. Look Into Your Eyes [07:17]
11. Love Theme [04:38]
12. Memories [01:41]

Fred Falke – Aurora
Fred Falke – Wait for Love (vanguard vocal edit)

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VIDEO OF THE WEEK – #81
as seen on radioSpin

ARTIST: The Cyborgs
TITLE: Dancy
ALBUM: The Cyborgs
WEB: wiredTV

directed by Ivan Cazzola