Listen Up No.18: Besnard Lakes - Albatross

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Slightly belated as lead-off singles go (the album dropped in March), for those who haven't picked up the excellent The Besnard Lakes Are the Roaring Night, here's a gentle reminder of why you should. Think skyscraping guitars, peaked only by the soaring melodies. As far as the vid goes... it's some kind of faux-espionage intrigue that's gone way over my head but still retains my interest. Oooo, deep.

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. 

Listen Up! No.12: Joy Formidable - Whirring

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Remind yourself of this pristine slab of crunchy bubblegum-shoegaze whilst awaiting news of the Welsh trio's their next move (apparently a full debut LP is in the pipeline). And see them live if you get the chance.

Listen Up No. 11: The Drums - Forever and Ever Amen (Saint Etienne remix)

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Interesting sideways cut of one of the otherwise duller offerings from the Brooklyn (/Florida) quartet. My only surprise is that it's not Ian Carmichael (yes, they love Sarah Records) providing the remixing services - watch this space.

Listen Up! No. 9: Laura Marling - Made By Maid

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(Nu-) Folk doesn't always mean ukelele's, banjos and a horribly misjudged faux-authenticity - Marling once again proves herself head and shoulders above her contemporaries (and lovers).

Listen Up! No.6: Allo Darlin' - My Heart Is a Drummer

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Clearly the chorus is 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' by Cindi Lauper, but who's complaining? The rest of the S/T record (which drops on June 7th) isn't bad either.

Listen Up! No.5: Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - When We Swam

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This chirpy tale of impotence is the perfect example of how miserable themes can be married to melody which sounds like the musical equivalent of a toddler at Christmas. Happy, that is. And yeh, I interviewed them, what of it?

Listen Up! No.4: Male Bonding - Year's Not Long

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Having caused a minor stir (in Dalston) last year by becoming a rare English signing to venerable US indie Sub Pop, the tattooed trio have repaid the faith with ramshackle slacker-punk tunes such as this. Likely to be a festival hit for the sweaty-tent brigade.

Listen Up! No. 3: Medications - Seasons

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Plenty of hooks, cross-eyed rhythms and great chops from this DC trio - the best band you've never heard of.

Listen Up! No.2: Ted Leo + the Pharmacists - Bottled in Cork

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The key cut from his robust, breathless new record, The Brutalist Bricks, here Ted proves irrevocably he's best when channeling heart over head. And then repeating the killer hook for the 15th time.

Introducing...BLACK MANILA BEACH PARADE

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More highly recommended new and underground music from The Popscener.

Today's hotshots: Black Manila Beach Parade

Mindful of the grand tradition of bands surf bands (The Beach Boys, The Barracudas, The Surfaris) named thematically to correspond with their sound, unsigned London trio Black Manila Beach Parade take it upon themselves to move things a step further. And so, the obligatory 'Beach' reference is joined by the mysterious 'Black Manila', hinting at the dark twinges of psychedelia (and creepy facepaint), and 'Parade', which more or less accounts for the large segments that sound quite a lot like The Doors. By no means the finished article, but ArtRocker certainly haven't been splashing about in the rip and kicking up hype foam for nothing.

Try: Jean LeLoup on their Myspace or the epic Calavera Catrina below



www.myspace.com/blackmanilabeachparade

Introducing...MONTAGE POPULAIRE

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More highly recommended new and underground music from The Popscener.

Today's hotshots: Montage Populaire

With that winning, oft-desired mix of hook-heavy tunes and an air of arch detachment, Montage Populaire are an indie blogger's wet dream. The brainchild of singer-songwriter Luke Donovan, their pleasantly underproduced demos approximate elements of post-punk and jangle-pop for the laptop generation - to thrilling effect. In fact, they're so good that even though they only formed last Autumn, Montage Populaire are already making their way around the South-East's nether regions and popping across the channel in March for 3-day Gallic excursion. Misery for every jobbing indie-rocker from Birmingham or Leeds; delight the rest of us.

Try: Break up the Band on their Myspace or Last Among Equals below

http://www.myspace.com/montagepopulaire