Alexander

Alex Ebert, better known as the messianic frontman of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, released his solo effort Alexander back in March. Scaling back from the 10+ piece enthusiasm of the Zeroes, Ebert still delivers on blissed out, 70's inspired psychedelia. "Truth," with it's Caribbean flavors, licks of Paul Simon and maybe even a little Citizen Cope for the more contemporary of our contemporaries? whistles and trips just enough to mask politically-minded lyrics. You don't get serious until you GET serious.

Alexander // Truth

Mondial Creative Labs

Nick Wurz and Kevin Bennett of the hugely talented shop, Mondial Creative Labs, took to the streets after VCU's loss to Butler two nights ago. They're like ghostwriters for the wild letdown and adrenaline detox experienced by students and fans as they swarmed, alighted and ultimately retreated from the scene on Broad. Surreal and sadly gorgeous, you could be on either side of the police line and still mourn the end of the cinderella story.

Fantastic stuff, gents. Check out an older ES interview with largely Mondial-populated band, Autocue, here.

VCU Riot after 2011 Final Four from MONDIAL on Vimeo.

the Diamond Center

Majorly stoked about these recent immigrants to the RVA scene. Brandi Price and Kyle Harris are the core to this psychedelically tribal thrum. Originating in Athens, GA, a rotating cast took them across state lines to Lubbock, TX where they recorded and released their second official LP, My Only Companion. Brief cameos of house pets and gatherings of friends to stomp, clap and holler make for a crafty album, full of voodoo percussion and Price's brass bell vocals.

Now calling RVA home, you'll see them this coming Sunday at Strange Matter. Feathered headdresses and peyote cactus chew will likely fit in fine.

The Diamond Center // Wtt {Live at Ipanema 19}

Houses

Houses the band is not the first of it's namesake, and not an easy one to hone in on. I'm still not sure if I'm writing about a chillwave husband/wife duo or eight merrymakers who got ripped a new one for joking about Switchfoot. {for seri, read the comments, it gives me second-hand embarrassment and adds to my monthly urge to disconnect, delete my FB account and never look at the Internets again}. To clarify for the group: merrymahkin today, opiate drift tomorrow.

Andy & Kinsey Hamilton, crunchy cuties, are the first two lego blocks of the Denver, CO ensemble. If you like We Are Magic and long for Crosby, Stills & Nash, you're pretty set. Over 2009 they recorded and released an album per season in it's evocation; an upbeat Spring, rock'n'roll Summer, etc use your context clues. People seem to dig their live shows, "will leave you covered in goosebumps and ready to f*cking wrestle a buffalo." Little did they know I already wrestle a f*cking buffalo, on Thursday nights in Chesterfield. And I listen to Switchfoot while I do it. Chew on that!

Houses // Red Feather

Tamaryn

A little extry and easily related BECAUSE...
Dominant Legs is featured in the music video premiere from Tamaryn. And she's in there, too. I owed you one from earlier in the week, anyway, so now we're squares in circle chairs. Pardon me while I stab a #2 in to my cornea.



Tamaryn // Dawning

Wolf People

The brit boys of the lupine persuasion take us on a time travel tour to 60s/70s era rock - their February release, Tidings, disjointedly puffs and passes in the same circle as TBK Attack and Release and White Denim Fits. Peace, love and Jethro Tull flutes set over western twang rubbed with eastern silks. Steel strings live in harmony with sitars, strung over tape to tape transfers that hisses and pops to their pleasing. It's like Woodstock, except in the UK, no patchouli and absolutely no acid tripping Little Red Riding Hoodlums.

Wolf People // Tiny Circle

Junip

Junip, not juniper. Or Jupiter.
Which is good on both counts, as I have an aversion to gin and do not have proper lung capacity to accomodate atmospheric ammonium hydro-sulfide.

But it's Junip, phew!, out of Gothenburg, Sweden and in existence since the early '90s. You'll recognize the tremolo of José González alongside Tobias Winterkorn (keyboard) and Elias Araya (drums). González and Araya have been palling around since 14 with a shared love of hardcore metal. Meeting and jiving Winterkorn from time to time at shows sparked conversation on a different aesthetic, something more on the 60s and 70s mellow guitars and a Moog. Far from thrash, and a clear fingerpoint in the hypnotically melodic direction.
A long, slow-trodden, patient direction - with their first full release, Fields, released last month after 10 years in the making.

Drift along at a North American show once they make landfall Nov. 1.

Junip // Rope and Summit

The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger

Put on your new pants and move out to France.

Sean Lennon and Charlotte Kemp Muhl want to make sure your ear catches totally boss lyrical efforts on Acoustic Sessions, October release. These two are so pretty with a band name so stealth it makes me mildly ill.

Usually an electronic amorous pair, the nine track album features just what's needed - guitar, piano, vibraphone - to exacerbate their trippy hippie pop pysch folk feeling. That is the most ridiculous genre listing ever. We're making up a word for it right now. We're calling it MACRAME SYNTH. Fruit snack on that.

The Ghost of Saber Tooth Tigers // Jardin du Luxembourg

Big Spider's Back

A DIY project out of Seattle, Yair Rubenstein is another musician coming out of his bedroom studio and hanging in the clubhouse with the likes of Atlas Sound, Black Moth Super Rainbow, Animal Collective and Neon Indian.

Just listen to the first 120 seconds of this track. First there's acoustic strings, maybe ukulele? Add synth percussion. Stir in tin bell jangles. Splash on shimmery light. Pound on piano keys. Sift on two-picked electric guitar chords. Blow in river reedy vocals on the lower keys. Keep up the loops of both electric and acoustic guitar to wrap it up in a tight cocoon you wouldn't mind climbing in to yourself.

You'll want to listen to most of the tracks on his debut EP, Warped, on "repeat one" so you don't miss anything.

Big Spider's Back // Perfect Machine

White Denim

Punk, spit in yo face, bluesy, psychedelic rock from Aussie Austin, Taxin Texas.

And if you wanna to wear them after Labor Day? Eff it, it's your world.

White Denim// Regina Holding Hands

White Denim // All You Really Have to Do

RIP Jerry Fuchs

Widely and wildly respected drummer, Jerry Fuchs from Maserati, Juan MacLean, !!!, and LCD Soundsystem, tragically died Sunday morning in a freak freight elevator accident. I wish I was just being me and making this up, but unfortunately one of the great ones has left us for good. He was 34. See the full Rolling Stone article here.

Some of his magic:
Maserati // Monoliths
Maserati // No More Sages
The Juan MacLean // The Simple Life

Crystal Antlers

While we're still talking about organs (musical ones), and soul for that matter, how's about taking a listen to these fellas. A bluesy doozy with a side of screaming heartbreak in my face matter, the Crystal Antlers' latest full length album, Tentacles, kind of makes me want to erase time with my forced-entry disorientation. What was that?

This is like the Doors and the Walkmen got together with a time machine and a bag of explosives and just decided to go apeshit. I love it.

Crystal Antlers // Andrew
Crystal Antlers // Time Erased


What $8 and a bag of schwag will buy you. Love the random wind turbine shots.

Woods

Do you miss acid? The way it made you one with the clouds and your sister's hair. The way it made you jump into a pond full of snakes on your 18th birthday because you believed God was inside of it. The way you and 8 strangers created the greatest life-size painting of John Lennon just to find out later it wasn't paint, but glue. And it wasn't John Lennon, it was GLUE. Well I don't. But I thought about it for a few seconds when listening to these Brooklyn-based psychedeliophiles. That's not really a word, but it should be. Woods Family Band, as they're sometimes referred to by at least one website, can only really be described as a quasi-modern psychedelic jam band. Bring your tie-dye, let's have a hippie dance.

Woods // Echo Lake