Free Range Music: Acid House Kings, The Crystal Method

>> Stockholm's Labrador label and electropoppers Acid House Kings want everyone to give props to Don Lennon, whose fey indie pop is laced with undercurrents of irony and humor. Download "Party Coordinator" from Lennon's 1997 set Maniac [link -- right click and save as]. And, as luck would have it, Labrador is also promoting Acid House Kings' new "karaoke cover EP" Everyone Sings Along With Acid House Kings. You can download the twee rump shaker "Tonight Is Forever" featuring Mr. Lennon on vocals here [right click and save as].

>> "7th Heaven" and electronica fans perhaps for the first time have something in common over which to rejoice. Techno act The Crystal Method has soundtracked the Jessica Biels-starrer "London," and you can stream the entire set at this link. So why don't you? The soundtrack streeted last month. If you develop a particular affinity for the track "The Glass Breaker," or even if you don't, you can download it here [right click and save as].

Today's Hotness: Portastatic, Nightmares On Wax, Colleen

>> Merge confirms that Portastatic will issue a new record, Who Loves The Sun, June 6. The CD is the instrumental soundtrack to a Canadian film of the same name. Portastatic, the secondary vehicle of Superchunk's Mac Macaughan and friends, has previously contributed music to films including "Looking For Leonard."

>> Warp Records is promoting the forthcoming Nightmares On Wax record In A Space Outta Sound with a dressed-up version of the Tetris game. Hit this link and play along -- each level of the game apparently features a different new NOW track. The trip-hop act's record streets April 20. If you buy it from Warpmart the record comes with free custom "cigarette" rolling papers -- quote are theirs, not ours.

>> Speaking of Warpmart, it's got details of a new release from everyone electronic music fan's favorite French schoolteacher Cecile Schott, a/k/a Colleen. Her latest record is part of Staaplaat's Mort Aux Vaches limited edition series. No, we don't really no what those words mean either. The set is purportedly different from her earlier records on Leaf because it is based on her live performances. It was recorded in the VPRO studios in Holland in 2004 and documents Colleen material played live between 2002 and 2004. More details here. While you're there, hit this link for info about a new LP from London-based electronic luminary Vessel, whose earlier work on Expanding Records we like a lot.

>> Some more news coming out of The Mobius Band camp. The trio has two cuts on a forthcoming Ghostly International compilation, Idol Tryouts Two, which streets March 21. The first track is "Electric Piano," which was recorded at the same time as the material for the band's 2005 long-player The Loving Sounds Of Static. The second track is a remix of that record's title track by Junior Boys. You can stream both cuts here. The band is also making a video for "The Loving Sounds Of Static," and a preview of the clip is at the Mobius Band MySpace cabin here.

clicky clicky Parade Of MySpace Stars v. 1

>> We've been avoiding exploring Whysall Lane for no good reason. Perhaps we weren't ready to hear Richard Baluyut move on, although we think he's had other stuff going on since '90s standard bearers Versus, creators of the stunning record The Stars Are Insane, ran their course. We finally hit the MySpace link we've been sitting on since The 'Nac posted it months ago and we were pleased with the punk spunk ("Time Machine") and amped-up Beatles influences ("Pillows") we heard. In Whysall Lane, Baluyet is abetted by former Jawbreaker drummer Adam Pfahler and bassist Mikel Delgado. Whysall Lane's debut on Blackball Records was supposed to street last month, but we don't think it did. According to the band's site you can already mailorder it, though.

>> Chicago-based indie quintet Track A Tiger began as the brainchild of one Jim Vallet. The act's moody folk rock absconds with the occasional chamber pop or electronic element, but primarily stands tall based on its patient, arresting songwriting. Standout track "Seashaken Heart," posted at the band's MySpace lean-to, is a subdued mid-tempo strummer beautifully augmented with guy/girl vocals, viola and chimes. We're not sure the band we're about to reference is canonical enough to warrant use as a referent, but "Seashaken Heart" recalls some of the mellower tracks of Dirty On Purpose's 2005 EP Sleep Late For A Better Tomorrow. Track A Tiger's debut Woke Up Early The Day I Died streeted Feb. 28.

>> Dunedin, New Zealand's The Dark Beaks sound like throwbacks to the American college rock scene of the late '80s, before (or at least it seemed this way to our youthful ears) every band felt beholden to a style or genre. Which isn't to say the act has no style. There's something very endearing in the band's sorta lo-fi, sorta jammy tunes with uncertain vocals. It makes us think of forgotten regional acts like suburban Philadelphia's Statues And Monuments or Orange County, Calif.'s Primitive Painters. We're particularly taken with the track "Dream About You." You can stream that song and others at The Dark Beaks' MySpace casa here, and the video is at YouTube. We dig it because the oversaturated image quality gives the video a real classic Psychedelic Furs look. The Dark Beaks' debut Spill Your Heart was released Feb. 16. Here's the video:

Coming To Your Local Bandstand: The Mendoza Line

Brooklyn slackmeisters The Mendoza Line finally get out to support their 2005 critical tour de force Full Of Light And Full Of Fire. With positive buzz for its often political and sometimes spooky seventh record, and 12 tour dates to satisfy in March, the band appears downright motivated. Chief songwriters (and married couple) Tim Bracy and Shannon McArdle lead the ragtag bunch of indie rockers and bassist Paul Deppler's handsome mustache on a southerly by southwesterly trek beginning March 10 in Upstate New Yawk, with a warm-up date tonight in their adopted hometown. Full Of Light And Full Of Fire was issued in the States in November on Misra. We're excited to hear the band tackle some of our favorites from the new record, like "Mysterious In Black" (available to stream and download at the band's MySpace corral here) and the fist-pumper "Name Names." Unfortunately we'll have to wait a little longer, since our fair city isn't on the itinerary this go-round. Check the list below to see if you are among the more luckily situated.

03/10 -- Ithaca, NY -- Cornell University
03/12 -- Pittsburgh, PA -- Garfield Artworks
03/13 -- Lexington, KY -- The Dame
03/14 -- Nashville, TN -- Third & Lindley
03/17 -- Austin, TX -- Maggie Mae's
03/18 -- Austin, TX -- Red Eyed Fly
03/22 -- St. Louis, MO -- Off Broadway
03/23 -- Columbus, OH -- Little Brother's
03/24 -- Bloomington, IN -- Second Story
03/25 -- Chicago, IL -- Schuba's
03/28 -- New York, NY -- Mercury Lounge

Today's Hotness: Mobius Band, David Bowie, Helmet

>> Fans of the seepage of indie rock into the popular culture will find their ears oddly pricking up should they find themselves seated in front of a television viewing a current New Balance shoe commercial. The music featured… it's on the tip of your tongue… it's… it's… The Mobius Band's "Starts Off With A Bang" from the City Vs. Country EP. Incidentally, we don't think this is the indietronic trio's first dalliance with music licensing. We heard some talk last year about a phone maker licensing a tune for a corporate presentation. Please, please God: Let this indie thing go so crazy that Mobius Band gets to design their own shoe and track jackets. We'd definitely buy 'em. So what's the trio up to these days? Writing new material and touring with Editors and Stellastarr* (the asterisk as far as we can tell is supposed to remind you that Stellastarr does not equal Starsailor), that's what. Since we've led you this far along, here are some tour dates:

03/20 -- Boston, MA -- The Roxy
03/21 -- Burlington, VT -- Higher Ground
03/22 -- Montreal, QC -- Cabaret du Musee Juste Pour Rire
03/24 -- Toronto, ON -- Phoenix Concert Theatre
03/25 -- Cleveland, OH -- Agora Theater
03/27 -- New York, NY -- Bowery Ballroom
03/28 -- Brooklyn, NY -- Warsaw
03/29 -- Washington, DC -- 9:30 Club
03/31 -- Northampton, MA -- Pearl Street
04/01 -- Philadelphia, PA -- Trocadero
04/02 -- Baltimore, MD -- Sonar Lounge
04/04 -- Norfolk, VA -- NorVa
04/05 -- Carrboro, NC -- Cat's Cradle
04/06 -- Athens, GA -- 40 Watt Club
04/07 -- Orlando, FL -- The Social
04/08 -- Miami, FL -- Studio A
04/09 -- St Petersburg, FL -- State Theatre
04/11 -- Nashville, TN -- Exit/In
04/12 -- Columbus, OH -- Newport Music Hall
04/13 -- Detroit, MI -- Magic Stick
04/14 -- Covington, KY -- The Mad Hatter
04/15 -- Columbia, MO -- The Blue Note
04/16 -- Chicago, IL -- Metro
04/18 -- Minneapolis, MN -- Fine Line Music Cafe
04/19 -- Lawrence, KS -- Granada Theater

>> BoingBoing here points to artifacts of an amazing time in rock culture, a time when David Bowie (well, Ziggy Stardust) was featured in a surely fan-created superhero comic in which he fought crime alongside Batman, Ozzy, Freddie Mercury and Mick Jagger. Simply astonishing. We heart the Internet.

>> Last fall we were sort of taken with the idea of MySpace Records, well, taken might not be the word, more like curious to see if the social networking behemoth can sell records to its more than 50 million registered users. Well, according to DigitalMusicNews the first MySpace Records comp has only sold fewer than 50,000 copies. Now, that sales performance is probably reflective of the quality of the music on the CD. But either way, it sets up some simple math. Assuming all the sales of the record were to MySpace users (seems unlikely), MySpace has only been successful is selling the record to a tenth of a percent of its user base. We were once told by a chap in the direct marketing field that a successful direct marketing campaign will convert into a sale 2% of the time. Perhaps MySpace should have just used junkmail to market the record. Here's Coolfer's take.

>> Nu-metal progenitors Helmet have signed with indie label Warcon, which will issue a forthcoming Wharton Tiers co-produced record. According to PunkNews band leader Page Hamilton has already written some music for the set. A bit more info here.

Review: Everloving Lightningheart | Cusp

When grappling with experimental music, listeners are well advised to disregard the inevitable expository accoutrements about the composers’ intentions or philosophy or school. Los Angeles-based octet Everlovely Lightningheart accompanies its gorgeous 40-minute improvisational noise piece Cusp with an inane album cover collage of decoupage woodland creatures, irrelevant CD art depicting an ancient diagram of the elemental spheres of classification, and press materials packed with pseudo-intellectual counterculture babble for the unlucky journalist. Listeners who venture beyond the willfully obtuse packaging will encounter experimental improvisation at its most engaging.

On Cusp Everlovely Lightningheart crafts a soundscape of organic sounds floating on electronic washes that serves equally well as background or subject for your scrutiny. Electronic waves and subtle loops create an immense sense of space around and between other more natural sounds, the totality of which convey impressions of pins dropping, cranks creaking, and floorboards moaning meshed with guitar scrapings, cymbal rattles and more recognizable traditional instruments. Cusp's pacing subtly waxes and wanes in intensity allowing the listener to alternately pursue her own thoughts or consider the band’s choices at her own discretion. The record reflects the rare work of experimental artists whose music could be as engaging in museum installations and modern dance accompaniments as it would be at an indie rock club performance. Cusp is slated to street next week on Hydrahead. -- Mr. Obb, clicky clicky Correspondent

Today's Hotness: Asobi Seksu, XTC, Mission of Burma

>> Ask and ye shall receive: after getting a sneak listen to two new Asobi Seksu tracks yesterday, the band put one of them up at their MySpace hizzy today. Click over here to check out the Brooklyn nu-gazer's track "Thursday," which is from the act's forthcoming record Citrus. The set is slated to street at the end of May.

>> By reading this article in the Boston paper that we actually get home delivered but never read, Coolfer, who we believe is based out of NYC, tells us something we didn't know: digital music distributor TuneCore was co-founded by Spin-Art Records co-honcho Jeff Price. Also, Price divulges that between 17 and 25% of Spin-Art revenues comes from ITunes. We are always attracted to hard numbers, it's what separates us from the apes. But the market power of ITunes, given its dominant share of the digital download market, should come as no surprise. Looking at another side of the equation, perhaps Spin-Art's sales are skewing more and more digital simply because its catalog is large (spanning 15 years) and growing and dwarfs the number of new releases the label issues in a year. That assumes that catalog titles sell better digitally than new releases, but we're not sure if that is the case.

>> Bad news for Mock Orange, whose First EP is among our favorite EPs. According to PunkNews.org the band was robbed. Twice. In Europe. The band is across the pond promoting its full length Mind Is Not Brain, which, incidentally, we didn't enjoy as much as the First EP. A run down of the bad vibes is at this link. There is some reportage that the band has cancelled the rest of its European dates, which is inaccurate. According to a post from one of the band members in the thread below the PunkNews item, the band only cancelled one date so one of the chaps could get set up with a new passport to replace a stolen one.

>> MarathonPacks here points to some great vintage XTC video. Mr. Packs discusses Partridge's "exhaustion" as driving the band off the road shortly thereafter, never too return. Our dog The Good Doctor once blogged that Partridge has crazy stage fright, and we presume that is the reason the act stopped touring lo those many years ago.

>> Word here over at the Matador bulletin board is that etching the flip sides of the singles in the sold-out Mission of Burma singles subscription series is taking longer than expected. The venerable label hopes to ship the first of the eight singles sometime next week.

>> We don't normally give too much thought to FM radio grungers Pearl Jam, since we've never listened to anything they released after 1994, but we're a little surprised the act, which has been hostile to certain corporate interests, has inked a new contract with Clive Davis' Top 40-oriented J Records. What's next, a cameo in "One Tree Hill"? Anyway, Vedder et al., will issue their eponymously titled eighth record via J on May 2. Here's the presser, with info about a first single and a free download.