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PORTFOLIO
We | Humans

Brand new EP from Reggio Emilia-based post-rockers Portfolio, featuring two unreleased tracks plus Beth Gibbons e Kim Novak, taken from their debut The Standing Babas, but here nicely re-worked. The first remixed by Silent Panda | Deadly Panda (a.k.a. Luca G from Julie’s Haircut), who plays guitars also on James Horses Chariot and Sion. The second one shows a wonderful different skin with less electronics and the introduction of a string quartet. An appreciated appetizer while waiting for their second full-length, sweetly enhanced by Laura Loriga‘s (Mimes of Wine, Giardini di Mirò) voice.

ARTIST: Portfolio
TITLE: We | Humans
LABEL: This Is the Land
RELEASE DATE: May 06, 2013
TIME: 24:54 min.
WEB: http://www.facebook.com/portfoliothesound
PURCHASE: special offer – NAME YOUR PRICE

01. James Horses Chariot [06:08]
02. Sion [07:17]
03. Kim Novak (with strings) [04:09]
04. Beth Gibbons (silent panda | deadly panda remix) [07:20]

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KAT PARSONS
It Matters to Me

Kat Parsons comes to the end of her trilogy releasing the final installment of her three-part EP series (following the previous Talk to Me and Oh!), each showcasing a distinct image and sound. Again, with this It Matters to Me, Kat Parsons brings her multifaceted personality and talent to the forefront, highlighting her writing style and singer/songwriter sound akin to a modern Carole King. Because pop is always a serious matter, even when it’s so sweet.

ARTIST: Kat Parsons
TITLE: It Matters to Me
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: April 9, 2013
TIME: 16:00 min.
WEB: http://www.katparsons.com/
PURCHASE: special offer – ONLY 4.96$

01. I’ll Be Here [04:23]
02. It Matters to Me [02:47]
03. I Won’t Ask [03:28]
04. Harder than This [02:34]
05. One Day [04:12]

PREVIEW: Kat Parsons – It Matters to Me

removed by request

VAGUE-À-BONDE
222

You, RS reader, should know: Vague-à-Bonde is Nicole Brenny: a 24 year old French Language scholar turned producer, songwriter and musician who released her debut album Involution/Evolution nearly a year ago. Driven by the need to challenge herself beyond academia, Nicole used her awkward post-college years to teach herself production, all about analog synths and how to arrange and write songs: she quit most of her normal jobs and spent the majority of her time working on music & traveling throughout North America. So now the time has come for 222, a 5 song EP that catches the traveler at a moment of repose between journeys: these are deeply reflective tracks, digging through the past with an eye to the future, a moment of preparation & planning before the next journey begins. You can only enjoy this future-retro electro-pop ( but always lost into its strong roots made by earthy analog synths and live instrumentation) and then start again.
To nowhere, just like a Vague-à-Bonde.

ARTIST: Vague-à-Bonde
TITLE: 222
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: April 1, 2013
TIME: 20:16 min.
WEB: http://vagueabonde.tumblr.com/
PURCHASE: special offer – ONLY 4.95$

01. Broke [04:49]
02. Evolved [03:51]
03. Our Love [04:01]
04. BP! [03:23]
05. New Pop [04:12]

PREVIEW: Vague-à-Bonde – Our Love

removed by request

SIGUR RÓS
Brennisteinn

Brand new EP by Sigur Rós, released as a download included with the ticket price for their 2013 tour: a tasty preview of their upcoming album Kveikur. Brennisteinn shows the Icelandic band taking a completely new musical direction: from something darker than most of their material that even crosses over into industrial territory to gloomy ambient pieces and low-key episodes. A good placebo for die-hard Sigur Rós fans which can’t wait.

ARTIST: Sigur Rós
TITLE: Brennisteinn EP
LABEL: XL
RELEASE DATE: March 28, 2013
TIME: 17:13 min.
WEB: http://www.sigur-ros.co.uk/
PURCHASE: special offer – ONLY 3.00$

01. Brennisteinn [07:55]
02. Hryggjarsúla [05:04]
03. Ofbirta [04:12]

PREVIEW: Sigur Rós – Ofbirta

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DIVE
No Soul

Dive is Fabian Tombers, from Cologne. Dive is the newest entry in the glitch electronic and dream pop scene. Dive shakes. And he does with No Soul: a chillwave heaven, a summer beat-driven soundtrack full of ambiance sentimental landscapes painted in orange, a soft orgy of noisy and colorful beats.

ARTIST: Dive
TITLE: No Soul
LABEL: Waking Ghosts
RELEASE DATE: November 15, 2012
TIME: 31:29 min.
WEB: http://divemusic.bandcamp.com/
PURCHASE: special offer – FREE DOWNLOAD!

01. Lindisfarne (James Blake remix) [04:02]
02. Seven Chimes [03:03]
03. C10H12N2O [01:31]
04. Capetown [03:36]
05. Cloudy [02:33]
06. C8H11N [03:03]
07. Nebelweg [05:55]
08. Wrong (DrDr remix) [04:05]
09. No Soul [03:41]

Dive – Capetown

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THE FAINT
Evil Voices

Brand new EP from Omaha electro-new-wave band The Faint: this four tracks represent the band’s first new music since 2008′s Fasciinatiion and were recorded at the group’s Enamel Studio alongside Bright Eyes member and long-time collaborator Mike Mogis. Evil Voices, with its robotic vocals and multi-faceted synth line alternating between lush groove and random noise explosion, maybe is the culmination of the band’s sound while laying the groundwork for new music ahead.

ARTIST: The Faint
TITLE: Evil Voices
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: November 15, 2012
TIME: 15:51 min.
WEB: http://www.thefaint.com/
PURCHASE: special offer – FREE DOWNLOAD

01. Evil Voices [03:42]
02. This Is IS IS (pain) [04:12]
03. An Unseen Hand [05:20]
04. Circuit Jerk [02:37]

The Faint – Evil Voices

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MOGWAI
Les Revenants

Les Revenants features Mogwai‘s soundtrack music for the French zombie TV series of the same name. Oftentimes, musical scores lose some of their power when separated from the film or show, but that’s definitely not the case here. It may be only 13 minutes long, but these four songs are packed with haunting melodies and eerie atmospherics and they ranks among their best work over the past few years. Maybe a sneak-peak at the direction Mogwai will be taking for their next album, maybe not. Who cares?

ARTIST: Mogwai
TITLE: Les Revenants
LABEL: Rock Action
RELEASE DATE: December 17, 2012
TIME: 12:46 min.
WEB: http://lesrevenants.canalplus.fr/
PURCHASE: special offer – ONLY 3.49$

01. Wizard Motor [04:48]
02. Soup [01:17]
03. The Huts [03:29]
04. This Messiah Needs Watching [03:14]

Mogwai – The Huts

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NEW ORDER
Lost Sirens

What is this? Please, don’t be too excited. Only a UK vinyl LP pressing including bonus CD version: an eight track collection of songs originally recorded for the Waiting For the Sirens’ Call album but never released. Let’s start this brand new year with a truly eclectic mix of electronica and guitars in the way only New Order know how.

ARTIST: New Order
TITLE: Lost Sirens
LABEL: Rhino / WEA
RELEASE DATE: January 22, 2013
TIME: 38:26 min.
WEB: http://www.neworderonline.com/
PURCHASE: price – 17.99$

01. I’ll Stay With You [04:22]
02. Sugarcane [04:51]
03. Recoil [05:10]
04. Californian Grass [04:35]
05. Hellbent [04:28]
06. Shake It Up [05:24]
07. I’ve Got A Feeling [04:29]
08. I Told You So [05:07]

New Order – Hellbent

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BURIAL
Kindred

Every new Burial‘s release is instantly filled with critical hype: superlatives heaped over superlatives. Deserved or not? This is an annoying question, maybe without a possible answer. The fact is that this Kindred EP is really different, and it does constitute a development in Burial‘s sound: a modern progression in the use of musical time and space.

ARTIST: Burial
TITLE: Kindred
LABEL: Hyperdub
RELEASE DATE: February 15, 2012
TIME: 30:29 min.
WEB: http://www.hyperdub.net/artists/view/Burial
PURCHASE: price – 20.27$

01. Kindred [11:28]
02. Loner [07:30]
03. Ashtray Wasp [11:45]

Burial – Loner

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GIARDINI DI MIRÒ
Unluck

Giardini di Mirò don’t waste anything. And how could they just think of hiding these three wonderful tracks? They couldn’t. They shouldn’t. They don’t. Because these are such good songs. Left to the borders of their latest LP Good Luck, Young Age, Invisible and the two-part suite End of the Road / Send a Present to Jude are now available through this Unluck EP, a 20-minute box filled with slow and rarefied atmospheres that start from the last piece of Good Luck (the misty ineluctable Flat Heart Society) and go back to the Mogwai of C.O.D.Y. laying a couple of fingers on the sweet dark moods coloring the post-rock side of band like Three Mile Pilot and Black Heart Procession.

ARTIST: Giardini di Mirò
TITLE: Unluck EP
LABEL: Secret Furry Hole
RELEASE DATE: October 8, 2012
TIME: 19:13 min.
WEB: http://www.giardinidimiro.com/
PURCHASE: http://www.bandcamp.com

01. Young Age [05:49]
02. Invisible [05:23]
03. End of the Road / Send a Present to Jude [08:01]

Giardini di Mirò – Invisible

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RESEARCH TURTLES
Mankiller (pt.2)

You know: after part one, part two comes. And this time is no exception. Surely you remember Research Turtles and their EP Mankiller (pt.1), so here’s Mankiller (pt.2). Nothing easier. Again six gems of the purest indie-rock, whatever you mean by “indie-rock”. Because it might be that you’re not sure what sense you should give to these two words: “indie” + “rock”. But it doesn’t matter: it’s certain that you know what is the meaning of the word “gems”.

ARTIST: Research Turtles
TITLE: Mankiller (part 2 of 2)
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: October 18, 2011
TIME: 15:30 min.
WEB: http://researchturtles.com/

01. Guy Like Me [01:47]
02. The Fancy [02:39]
03. Break It Up [02:24]
04. Space [02:56]
05. Into You [03:12]
06. What Can I Say? [02:32]

Research Turtles - Space

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KAT PARSONS
Oh!

Kat Parsons is a fearless performer who walks the line between innocence and exuberance. Born in Vienna to opera singer Darrell Parsons and recording artist Julie Parsons, she grew up immersed in music, studying piano and later majoring in theatre. Oh! is her third EP, and once again it pivots her great songwriting and vocal ability and further establishes her as the talented artist that she is. Her voice is light and agile, her phrasing like exquisite and delicate fur, and her folksy songs move with a soft power, sailing on guitars, keys and happy drums. Something tiny, but still recklessly curious, like the kittens she put on the cover.
Here, for RS readers, an exclusive free download of the main single featured on this release, Love Changes Everything.

ARTIST: Kat Parsons
TITLE: Oh! EP
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: September 10, 2012
TIME: 15:35 min.
WEB: http://katparsons.com/
PURCHASE: http://www.amazon.com/

01. Love Changes Everything [03:20]
02. Oh! [03:38]
03. What’s Wrong? [03:06]
04. Let’s Not Be Scared [02:11]
05. Happy [03:20]

Kat Parsons – Love Changes Everything

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SOUNDREAMER
Blue Portrait

Do you remember Rebery, the Barcelona-based duo that more than one year ago released its second self-titled album? Good. Because here we are to speak about Rebery former member Matthew‘s solo project: Soundreamer. He started recording some songs that could not fit with Rebery‘s production and some compositions for multimedia projects, that now he collects into two EPs: the 2011′s In a Dark Dimension of Time and this Blue Portrait. Blue Portrait features five instrumental (except the last Horizons, that contains come spoken samples) tracks trying to create an atmospheric, hypnotic and visual landscape. A post-indie-rock which experimental mood often cross the frontier of a dark, visionary, jazzy blues.

ARTIST: Soundreamer
TITLE: Blue Portrait EP
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: October 1, 2012
TIME: 19:55 min.
WEB: http://www.facebook.com/soundreamer2012
PURCHASE: http://www.bandcamp.com/

01. Petenkepe [03:45]
02. Sea Blues [04:20]
03. Vortex [02:36]
04. Fourth Equinox [03:49]
05. Horizons [05:25]

Soundreamer – Petenkepe

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RS HOT SPOT #09
stay updated with radioSpin

Do you remember Athens-based pacificUV? They’re working on their brand new album and, in perfect pacificUV-style, they want to make our mouth water with a pre-release double EP. This brand new version of the Chrysalis EP joins together the latest 2011′s one (featuring also a rad Smiths’ cover) and the old 2006′s EP (featuring a rare Eluvium’s cover). As said above, the resulting collection of 10 tracks (that you can stream down-below) is a precursor to their fourth full length album which comes out the Spring of 2013.

verified source.

SOUNDS OF VENUS
Star Dust, Baby

Boston-based five-piece Sounds of Venus (name inspired from Velvet Underground‘s Venus in Furs) releases its self-produced debut, revealing a great, pure and ready-to-explode potential: with lush male and female vocal harmonies, surging electric guitar, a solid foundation of bass, and dynamic percussion, their sound is open to limitless possibilities. Sounds of Venus‘ reference-points (musically speaking) are clear: 90′s Radiohead in primis, but also Sigur Rós, with some wonderful deviations to the poppets Björk, especially when Paige’s singing. Anyway, the band seems to be on its way to find a well define sound, without losing the nice eclecticism that permeates these tracks. Inside Star Dust, Baby everything somehow sound warm, comforting, organic: alive. There’s none of the cold artificiality of much modern music. And that doesn’t mean Sounds of Venus‘ notes are old: it means they’re beautiful.

ARTIST: Sounds of Venus
TITLE: Star Dust, Baby
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: Aug 8, 2012
TIME: 21:40 min.
WEB: http://www.soundsofvenus.com/

01. Human Light [03:16]
02. Time [04:36]
03. Conviction [04:06]
04. Headless Chickens [03:27]
05. Insect in Amber / Did You Find It? [06:15]

Sounds of Venus – Conviction

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SEBADOH
Secret EP

After nearly 14 years of silence, Sebadoh is almost ready to release some new material.
The Secret EP features five new tracks written by Lou Barlow and Jason Loewenstein.
Secret apparently won’t be given a full release, but it will be available at future Sebadoh shows and on Bandcamp by now. The Dinosaur Jr. side-project is expected to release a new full-length in early 2013, its first since 1999’s The Sebadoh and the band assures that none of this bunch of songs will be in the forthcoming LP.

ARTIST: Sebadoh
TITLE: Secret EP
LABEL: self-released
RELEASE DATE: July 23, 2012
TIME: 16:46 min.
WEB: http://www.sebadoh.com/

01. Keep the Boy Alive [04:07]
02. My Drugs [04:05]
03. Arbitrary High [03:08]
04. I Don’t Mind [03:53]
05. All Kinds [01:33]

Sebadoh – I Don’t Mind

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