John's New Music Blog

If the year were to end today, I would proclaim Cults, and their track "You Know What I Mean" as the band and track of the year. Their debut album isn't being released until May, but several tracks have made their way onto the blogs, and of the tracks I've heard, "You Know What I Mean" is a stomp the floor, pound the table, certifiable hit. It's a '50's throwback Phil Spector "Wall of Sound" meets lo-fi song and at the 49 second mark, be prepared to be blown away. You will be listening to this over and over again.

Pitchfork brings news of a remix version of Warpaint's "Undertow," by Javelin. It's an excellent remix that very slightly speeds up the pace of the track and adds to it a bit more depth with some sound effects that make the song dance floor ready. If you liked the original, you'll enjoy the Javelin remix.

Photo by Mia Kirby

Here are the two tracks, side by side for your comparison:

The Remix: "Undertow (Javelin Remix)"

The Original: "Undertow" by Warpaint

The track is available as a free download from Warpaint's website. Their debut album, The Fool, is available for download from iTunes and Amazon (on sale for $5) and from Warpaint's website as a 12" double vinyl and download. Warpaint will be in Philadelphia at the TLA on April 1, click here for tickets.

(H/T: Pitchfork)

Today's featured band is Chicago's indie pop supergroup, Tiny Fireflies. The band consists of Kristine from thew band Tiny Microphone and Lisle from the band Fireflies and they combined to release a three track EP called ePop005 on Eardrums Pop, an excellent net label that releases collaborations from indie pop and rock bands from all over the world.


The three tracks are an excellent example of indie pop shoegaze, the first track, 'Holding Pattern" is a steamy, slow song that has The xx's signature "make out music for the smart set" sound written all over it. It's a good track for a late Friday night impromptu dance party for two with someone you want to get closer to.

The second track is "Snow," a quiet track that falls around you like snowflakes as it fills the room. Like the TARDIS, it's bigger on the inside and the complex layers combine to create a lovely track that wouldn't feel out of place on a Belle and Sebastian album.

The third track is a true gem, a cover of Skeeter Davis' "The End of the World." Eardrums Pop asks the bands to do a cover of a song and Tiny Fireflies picked a cover of a cover, the Claudine Longet version of "The End of the World."


ePop005 is available for free download from Eardrums Pop. Kristine and Lisle also record together with a few more friends in the Chicago band Very Truly Yours, who have an album out for download from Amazon and iTunes. If you like Allo, Darlin', check out Very Truly Yours.

Last night I had the opportunity to see The Get Up Kids play the Theater of the Living Arts (TLA) on South Street. It was the first time that I've seen them, and for that matter, the first time I've heard any of their music and I was pleasantly surprised. The Get Up Kids (click here for the band's history) are from the first wave of emo bands from the mid-'90's that spawned bands like Blink-182 and Fall Out Boy; you can hear how they influenced those bands with their guitar work and vocals.

The band is touring in support of their new album, There Are Rules, and they'll play one more night at the TLA tonight with Miniature Tigers and Brian Bonz (Click here for tickets). The album is out now on the band's own label, Quality Hill Records, and it's also available for download from iTunes and Amazon. A big thank you to Jessie Clark for inviting me to the show and introducing me to an excellent band that escaped my notice.

Last December I featured the unsigned band Big Wave Riders, an indie surf rock band from the sundrenched beaches of Helsinki, Finland and their tracks "It's Funny Things Aren't Gonna Change" and "Big Sound." Yesterday, Teppo and the band released their new single "Skate or Die," an excellent followup to their first two tracks. The song starts a little slow with an homage to surf guitar legend Dick Dale, but it builds to a tempo change about midway through that kicks it into high gear. It's definitely one to download.