Videotime.

The new video for Flash Delirium of MGMT, directed by Andreas Nilsson, who we know as the brilliant brain behind the image and videos of The Knife and Fever Ray.
It's a freaky video, but it's kind of funny too!

Watch it at MGMT's site: http://www.whoismgmt.com/

And The new video for Monarchy's The Phoenix Alive. It's already the third time this week I'm posting about this song!
If someone was hoping to get to known the real musicians behind Monarchy,...maybe insiders would recognize them on the images, but I can't.

Back and forth.

You might know Operator Please from it's hit Just A Song About Ping Pong.
This young Australian pop band is going to release it's second album, Gloves, on April 26th 2010.

If you don't know the story behind the band, let me inform you. They formed in secondary school, where they participated at a "battle of the bands" competition.
They broke trough with their aforementioned hit and even won an award for it. This all with the consequence that they're probably one of the most popular indie bands of Australia nowadays.

Anyhow, Operator Please isn't that well-known in the rest of the world, but they're still quite young and their music certainly has the universal qualities to make it everywhere.
They remind me of the Uk punk band Gossip. Not that main member Amandah Wilkinson is also a gigantic Lesbian, but she isn't a lightweight either.
Anyhow since their formation they've made some changes of bandmembers, but Amandah sits still firmly on her throne.


Gloves is a good punk-pop album, it has some serious chance to become a commercial success like Gossip.
The first single Logic, was released in February and has it's own video.

Opener Catapult is one of my favourite tracks, it immediately convinces you to listen to the rest of the LP.
Another really strong song is Volcanic, the title already explains that this is a powerful song.
Also Losing Patience is awesome, the electronic sounds deliver a great extra to Amandah's firm voice.

Gloves is a fantastic pop album, these kids have a wonderful carrier in front of them. IF THEY STAY AWAY FROM DRUGS. ^__^

Tracklist:

01 - Catapult
02 - Just Kiss
03 - Logic
04 - Oh My
05 - Back And Forth
06 - Volcanic
07 - Loops
08 - Jealous
09 - Losing Patience
10 - Like Magic

An end has a start.

The Golden Filter deserves the reputation of being one of the best synth-electro duo's of the new decade. This young boy-girl duo from New York will release it's début album Voluspa on April 26th in the UK and almost two months later on June 15th in the USA.

Voluspa is named after the ancient Nordic poem Völuspá, which relates the story of the creation of the world and its coming end.
Anyhow Völuspa was much anticipated by my friends and myself. The singles Solid Gold, Thunderbird and Hide Me (they're also on the album) are unbelievably great, Hide Me is even my second most played track of the last 3 months.

I've got to known this fantastic duo when they were put in the spotlight by the French label, Kitsuné, using their cover Favourite Things on their 7th Kitsuné Maison Compilation, and also Ministry of Sound and Sisterphunk used their tracks in their compilations, Mashed 5 and Sisters.

Anyhow Voluspa is a heavenly album, 11 songs full of amazingness and poppy synth-explosions.
Not only the aforementioned singles are great, also the new tracks are sweet.
Opener Dance Around The Fire is full of electronic strings and synths followed by the best song, Hide me.
For some reason, I always hear "Fuck Me In The Eye" instead of "Look Me In The Eye" in the eponymous song. I must be sick.

Anyhow if you're a fan of electro-chill music, The Golden Filter really is something for you.
Their songs have the power to stick in your head for weeks, and believe me it's hard to get them out of there.

THUNDERBIIIIIIRD!

Tracklist:

1. "Dance Around The Fire" 4:25
2. "Hide Me" 3:52
3. "Look Me in the Eye" 4:31
4. "Moonlight Fantasy" 4:28
5. "Solid Gold" 5:28
6. "The Underdogs" 4:24
7. "Stardust" 6:41
8. "Frejya's Ghost" 4:38
9. "Kiss Her Goodbye" 1:39
10. "Nerida's Gone" 3:17
11. "Thunderbird" 5:30

The dramatic South.

As you might know Belgium is divided in two. The Dutch-speaking part and the French-speaking part have both a great alternative music-scene. However, there isn't many (almost zero) interaction between the two region's. Most Dutch-speaking people don't know anything about the French scene.
This is also the fault of the media who're focussing on their own region and on the rest of the world, but the other part of the country seems to be a taboo.

So as a Dutch-speaking citizen, I've to discover my southern neighbours myself.
Last week, I had the great honour to listen to the new album of My Cheap Little Dictaphone (MCLD).
Their album is called The Tragic Tale Of A Genius, it is released on March 22 2010.
MCLD is a sideproject of frontmen Redboy, member of another Walloon band called Hollywood Pornstars.

The Tragic Tale Of A Genius is actually a concept album telling the tragic tale of a young musician, it's based on the life of Brian Wilson (The Beach Boys).
It's a sort of alternative rock-opera. They really remind of bands like Shearwater and Muse. The style is somewhat dramatic and quite epic rock. This also means a whole bunch of instruments (more than 30!) with many strings of course.
In this orchestral setting MCLD created 13 magnificent songs.


My favourite song is No Self Esteem, it really reminds me of a song of Muse.
Anyhow there are no bad songs on this album.
And since I'm a big fan of this kind of epic indie, and there isn't a band in Belgium who's making such music, MCLD gained a new fan! I might go see them in May in Brussels (Nuits Botanique, Cirque Royal, 8 May).

Tracklist:

01. Overture
02. Piano Waltz
03. He's Not There
04. What Are You Waiting For
05. Holy Grail
06. Shine On
07. Slow Me Down
08. In My Head
09. What The Devil Says
10. No Self Esteem
11. Tragic Tale Of Genius
12. A Man With No Soul
13. Face To Face

Go To FileFactory.com

Parisian Indians.

I'm must admit, I was never a big fan of CocoRosie. I've checked their Myspace a couple times but it never could convince me to listen more.
However, I've listened to their new album, Grey Oceans, and I feel stupid that I've never liked them.

Cause my dear readers, Grey Oceans is a magnificent album. The two popular American sisters, Sierra (Rosie) en Bianca (Coco) Cassady, who're currently residing in Paris have managed to deliver an awesome LP.
However, they really have to win a prize for the ugliest cover art EVER.

The album is not comparable with any other musicians I know. They use so many different styles, but let's call it "freak folk".
Sometimes it's a quiet harp other times you can hear tribal beats and synths or Hip-Hop music.

But the freakiest things are the great voices of the Cassady sisters. They're like the crazy cousins of Joanna Newsom.

Anyhow the albums' first two songs are my favourites, especially Smokey Taboo, which demonstrates the influence of Native-American music.
Title track Grey Oceans is a beautiful slow song, with nice piano-playing and a moving cello.

I don't really know their older albums, but a friend told me that the new LP is more constant than the others. I find it very original music and it's certainly one of the highlights of this week.

Anyhow I won't bore you with more details, just listen some tracks please.
Grey Oceans is set for May 11 2010.

Tracklist:

01 Trinity's Crying
02 Smokey Taboo
03 Hopscotch
04 Undertaker
05 Grey Oceans
06 R.I.P. Burn Face
07 The Moon Asked the Crow
08 Lemonade
09 Gallows
10 Fairy Paradise
11 Here I Come