Listen Up! No. 23: The Young Veins - Take a Vacation!

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Struck with the realisation that at 22 they still had time to do something meaningful with their lives, and sobered with the realisation that being in Panic At the Disco wasn't it, these two average-to-accomplished guitarists (Ryan Ross and Jon Walker) have now set about writing average-to-accomplished Byrds-ian 60s pop. It's got all the emo kids rather, erm, emotional - an irony which is probably lost on them.

Listen Up! No. 21: Stagecoach - Map to the Freezer

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I'm not entirely sure whether the video is a send-up or a tribute to laughably unrealistic 90s explosion advert Speed, but either way I'm charmed - this Surrey lot have crafted an excellent slice of breathless, punky indie with just enough trigger-happy melody to hold it together. Like a ballsier (and thus far less irritating) incarnation of Los Campesinos.

"I had a dream I shot you with mace and I... hope you're not okay", they say. Food for thought for the critics...





Flip to about 1.20 for the music, or revel in the majesty of Keanu's adrenalin-addled performance. Hmmm.

Listen Up! No 14: LCD Soundsystem - Drunk Girls

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Yes, I know - last month called and wants its new songs back - but regardless, this track still warrants mention for perfectly distilling the oft-barmy hedonism of boozing, all in a flurry of sharp one-liners and David Byrne vocals. If there was any justice this would've been number 1, not 190 (eek!).

Listen Up! No. 13: Thomas Tantrum - The Last Kiss

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This is the best I've heard in a while of the shiny new tracks PRs occasionally feed into my inbox to break up the monotonous stream of penis enlargement and Nigerian banking emails. Yes I wish my penis were bigger, no I don't want to invest $12000 in Dr. Ernest Dadanu's 'Freebank of Lagos', nor divulge my bank account details.

This unsigned Southampton quartet mix the trigger happy guitar-smarts of Good Shoes with a more palatable take on The Long Blondes' Pulp-apeing debut.

The Last Kiss by Thomas Tantrum

Kate @ WorkItMedia made this all possible - ta.