What’s New @ KZUU: 3/28/11

Lots of good stuff going into rotation this week, including the Raveonettes, the Sounds, Timber Timbre, and Craft Spells’ debut album (featuring ex-MD Javier on guitar!). Check ’em out, and don’t forget about the All-Station Meeting this Wednesday in Todd 420 at 7 PM.

New Adds, 3/28/11:

#10 Eksi Ekso – Brown Shark, Red Lion

#16 Five Eight – Your God Is Dead To Me Now

#19 Bibio – Mind Bokeh

#26 We Became Actors – Something Major

#30 Agnes Obel – Philharmonics

#33 The Raveonettes – Raven in the Grave

#46 The Sounds – Something to Die For

#69 Timber Timbre – Creep on Creepin’ On

#88 Craft Spells – Idle Labor

#119 Dirty Beaches – Badlands

What’s New @ KZUU: 3/21/11

Welcome back from spring break everyone! While you were all relaxing and catching up on sleep, KZUU was hard at work, preparing for your return. We’ve cleaned out a lot of space in the library to make room for all the new albums coming in, as well as a bunch of other exciting things! So after a brief calm period in our lives, we’re back into the routine. Here’s your new adds for the new week.

New adds, 3/21/11:

#4 The Lonely Forest – Arrows

#7 Plateau – Albany Park

#44 Parlours – Parlours EP

#56 The Joy Formidable – The Big Roar

#59 Royal Bangs – Flux Outside

#71 Carnivores – Chandelier EP

#80 The Curious Mystery – We Creeling

#89 The Mountain Goats – All Eternals Deck

#93 The Pains of Being Pure at Heart – Belong

#109 Heidecker & Wood – Starting From Nowhere

Removed:

Girls – Broken Dreams Club EP (MUS)

Lord Huron – Mighty EP (MUS)

Wooden Wand – Death Seat (MUS)

KZUU Top 30: 3/11/11

Last week’s Band of the Week Toro y Moi takes this week’s #1 spot! I feel like I have so much power over the DJs, it seems like every Band of the Week gets an immediate boost up the charts. Oh, the devious things I could do with this new found power! But at this rate, you’d expect Yarn Owl to top the charts, no? (Make that happen, seriously). In other charting news, Pandit makes a rush to #3, y’all can thank DJ Cardoons for that awesome recommendation. Lykke Li spends her first chart week at #5, and El Ten Eleven, possibly because of the just announced Belltower show, jumps up to #9.

Stay tuned in the coming days for the interview/performance with Colleen Green, right here on KZUU! Have a great Spring Break!

-Adam

KZUU Top 30, 3/11/11:

1. Toro Y Moi – Underneath the Pine

2. The Cave Singers – No Witch

3. Pandit – Eternity Spin

4. Telekinesis – 12 Desperate Straight Lines

5. Lykke Li – Wounded Rhymes

6. Typhoon – A New Kind of House EP

7. Yuck – Yuck

8. Ducktails – Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics

9. El Ten Eleven – It’s Still Like a Secret

10. Millionyoung – Replicants

11. Acrylics – Lives and Treasure

12. Bright Eyes – The People’s Key

13. East River Pipe – We Live in Rented Rooms

14. The Low Anthem – Smart Flesh

15. Winter’s Fall – At All Angles

16. The Brutes – Glorious Punch

17. Destroyer – Kaputt

18. Drive-By Truckers – Go-Go Boots

19. Ghost Animal – Youth

20. Smith Westerns – Dye It Blonde

21. Cut Copy – Zonoscope

22. The Dears – Degeneration Street

23. Fergus & Geronimo – Unlearn

24. Gathered Ghosts – Sampler

25. Gil Scott-Heron & Jamie xx – We’re New Here

26. Middle Brother – Middle Brother

27. PJ Harvey – Let England Shake

28. STRFKR – Reptilians

29. Tennis – Cape Dory

30. Wye Oak – Civilian

GUEST POST: The Dodos – “No Color”

It’s been four albums now and we have a pretty good handle on what the Dodos are capable of. Gradually, Meric Long and Logan Kroeber have developed a sound defined by Long’s ability to attack his acoustic guitar. That remains unique, even five years after the release of their debut, Beware of the Maniacs. Now, on No Color, more elements have entered into the production, and the result is a broad, sonically diverse album.

Where previously the band stuck to their basic acoustic-guitar-and-drums formula, with an occasional toy piano thrown in, there are now moments where they get “loud,” as loud as they can, with distortion and even electric guitars. Album opener “Black Night” will satisfy long-time fans with familiar frantic work on the toms by Kroeber. That deep drum tone resonates through the entire album, much the same way it has throughout their entire career. “Going Under” is a good example of all of the band’s strengths presented in one six-minute song. What starts as a simple beat with some finely picked guitar play quickly turns into one of the most perfect melodies of their discography as Long sings “this ship is going under,” backed by (if you can believe it) NEKO CASE. The song then switches between those two elements and another, louder, distorted “jam.”

Yes, perhaps the biggest selling point for new listeners will be the backing vocals provided by NEKO CASE. NEKO CASE, people. It’s hard to say if she is even that interesting anymore, but her subtle accompaniment is a wonderful compliment to Long time and again throughout the album’s nine songs.

No Color is simply another fantastic album from a band perfecting their intricate and beautifully-crafted pop masterpieces.

–Evan

Band of the Week: Yarn Owl

2008 was a big year for indie-folk music. Just to give you a bit of context, that year saw the release of: The Tallest Man on Earth’s Shallow Grave, Shearwater’s Rook, Fleet Foxes debut album, and Lie Down in the Light by Bonnie “Prince” Billy. That’s a hell of a year for any genre. But during that year, a small band from Pullman, WA was perfecting their sound, and crafting songs for an album that would go on to be just as important for this corner of the Pacific Northwest as any tune by a bearded band of mountain men.

Yarn Owl debuted in 2009 with their Tiny Dots cassette, an 8 song EP full of home recorded folk tunes, not far from the sound of bassist Tim Meinig’s previous band, Band of Horses. What those early songs lacked in production value was more than made up with the beautiful shimmering guitar work and some jaw-dropping drumming by Ted Powers.

Since then, Yarn Owl has recorded an EP titled Stay Warm and a brand new full-length called Montaña y Caballo. Montaña, recorded over a weekend in a barn near Moscow, ID, contains many familiar elements that Yarn Owl has displayed over the years. Many of these elements have been tweaked and refined into something more representative of the expansive nature of a Yarn Owl track. Take the eponymous “Embrace Our Place (Montaña Y Caballo)”, which begins with lead singer Javier Suarez singing alone, before a wash of guitar effects and drums drive the song towards a sprawling guitar solo. Progression like this existed on previous efforts, but becomes more apparent with the increased production value.

While Montaña carries some heavy songwriting, the beauty shines when they take everything down a notch. “Summit”, a low-key acoustic solo track by Javier, provides a refreshing interlude between two fast-paced jams. “Follow the Coast” is driven by a shaker and Suarez’s vocals, soaring high above the rest of the instruments rather than melding in to harmonize.

Despite not expanding beyond the highways between Boise-Seattle-Portland, Yarn Owl have achieved something that bands with double the albums and thousands of times the fans have yet to do: find a sound, perfect it, and stick to it. In today’s world of genre blending and labeling, Yarn Owl is a friendly reminder that there is merit in doing things your own way. Even if they aren’t as popular as Fleet Foxes or Band of Horses, for any connoisseur of Northwest indie-folk, Yarn Owl are one of the most important bands of the genre.

Check out Montaña y Caballo in the preview rack today, or purchase it at Yarn Owl’s bandcamp page.

What’s New @ KZUU: 3/7/11

Some great new albums for you all this week. Click the links for a little preview.

New adds, March 7th:

#2 Stateless – Matilda

#13 Sin Fang – Summer Echoes

#20 Lia Ices – Grown Unknown

#32 Parts & Labor – Constant Future

#43 Raw Milk – Tired Giant

#52 Kurt Vile – Smoke Ring for My Halo

#55 Noah and the Whale – Last Night on Earth

#72 Beach Fossils – What a Pleasure EP

#81 The Asteroid #4 – Hail to the Clear Figurines

#90 Yarn Owl – Montaña y Caballo

#114 Rainbow Arabia – Boys and Diamonds

Removed:

Zach Hill – Face Tat (moved to MUS)

Suuns – Zeroes QC (moved to MUS)

Belle and Sebastian – Write About Love (moved to MUS)

The Sleep-Ins – Songs About Girls & Outer Space (deleted)

Buke + Gass – Riposte (moved to MUS)

Pepper Rabbit – Beauregard (moved to MUS)

Steve Polo – As To What We’ve Found (deleted)

Eli Paperboy Reed – Come and Get It (MUS)

One Hundred Flowers – Mechanical Bride (moved to MUS)

The Extra Lens – Undercard (moved to MUS)

Bleu – Four (moved to MUS)

 

KZUU Top 30: 3/4/11

This week’s number one artist didn’t have to travel too far to steal the top slot away. Gathered Ghosts, AKA Yarn Owl/Craft Spells member and former KZUU Music Director Javier Suarez took #1 this week by a large margin, partly due to the awesome house show he played last Friday, and party due to how absolutely fantastic his music his. If you don’t believe me, Jav took out Cut Copy, Cloud Nothings and James Blake without even releasing an album. His Sampler basically includes some demos and in-progress songs. If that doesn’t speak to the quality of songwriting, I don’t know what does.

In other charting news, Cut Copy stayed strong, coming in at #2. Toro y Moi and Yuck came in #6 and #7, respectively. Ghost Animal, a Portland band (and friends of KZUU) spent their first week in the charts at #14. James Blake‘s self-titled debut lost a little steam, coming in at #16. All in all, a great week guys. Keep an eye out for even more new music on Monday!

-Adam

KZUU Top 30: 3/4/11

1. Gathered Ghosts – Sampler

2. Cut Copy – Zonoscope

3. The Cave Singers – No Witch

4. Cloud Nothings – Cloud Nothings

5. Deerhoof – Deerhoof vs. Evil

6. Toro y Moi – Underneath the Pine

7. Yuck – Yuck

8. Smith Westerns – Dye It Blonde

9. Telekinesis – 12 Desperate Straight Lines

10. Millionyoung – Replicants

11. Minks – By the Hedge

12. Tapes n’ Tapes – Outside

13. Bright Eyes – The People’s Key

14. Ghost Animal – Youth

15. Goldenboy – Sleepwalker

16. James Blake – James Blake

17. La Sera – La Sera

18. Loch Lomond – Little Me Will Start A Storm

19. Mariage Blanc – Mariage Blanc

20. PJ Harvey – Let England Shake

21. Belle and Sebastian – Write About Love

22. The Dears – Degeneration Society

23. Destroyer – Kaputt

24. Jessica Lea Mayfield – Tell Me

25. Tennis – Cape Dory

26. Warm Ghost – Uncut Diamond EP

27. DOM – Sun Bronzed Greek Gods

28. Ducktails – Ducktails III: Arcade Dynamics

29. East River Pipe – We Live In Rented Rooms

30. Esben & the Witch – Violent Cries

Band of the Week: Wye Oak

Wye Oak is a band that has reinvented the boundaries of new age folk music with dense shoegaze guitars and anxious rhythms, and they make our slot as KZUU’s Band of the Week. Jenn Wasner and Andy Stack  are the masterminds behind Wye Oak’s lyrically inclined 3rd full length: Civilian. This album is a collection of songs that grab you at the most intimate moments and leave you emotionally invested in each track. It isn’t just any folkie blog band, it is one that has managed to stand out within a crowded indie rock genre. Their sound is untouchable and hard to replicate, and with each brooding track you feel as if Jenn Wasner is singing directly to you, leaving the listener emotionally exhausted.

Wye Oak has developed throughout the years, getting better and better with each collection of songs they release. But this new album feels more sincere and holds on strong ground within it’s genre, whereas other bands crumble. This is evident when you listen to tracks such as the title track “Civilian” as well as other standouts “Holy Holy” and “Plains”. These tracks are great places to start when you first pop Wye Oak’s “Civilian” in your laptop. Give it a chance, roll down your blinds, and let the album sink in. Trust me… you’re in for an emotional listen.

-Brennan