International music, News

Elephant Micah – Louder Than Thou

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New Elephant Micah album Louder Than Thou is out and available. Ok, you have to wait a few more weeks for the vinyl, but digital album is already available as name-your-price download. I need to decide whether to buy the vinyl or pay something for the download. I feel way too guilty to just enjoy this beautiful record for free. Elephant Micah is magnificent and has released several lo-fi folk masterpieces. If you are into people like Mark Kozelek and Jason Molina, you really should be listening to Elephant Micah as well. Louder Than Thou isn’t his easiest album to approach. At least for me, because I’m not used to spend my afternoons with 6-7 minute long folk songs. However, this guy is such a talent that he can sell a long experimental folk tune to a fan of simple pop songs. This one below is the first single If I Were a Surfer. listen to the rest of the album by hitting that bandcamp link. And do check out his amazing back catalogue.

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/26585762″ iframe=”true” /]
 

Elephant Micah Website
Product of Palmyra at bandcamp

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Finnish music, News

Tolbiac – Kaupunki

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Tolbiac is a genius. Kaupunki is a new a song by Tolbiac. I fell in love with it about 23 seconds after I started listening to it. Hit play and try to beat my record.

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/35373390″ iframe=”true” /]
 
And here’s a few months older treasure Elokuussa.

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/24343728″ iframe=”true” /]
 
I don’t know about you, but I think these are some of the best Finnish songs I’ve heard during the recent months. Tolbiac is definitely on to something and I hope he keeps on writing songs like these two beauties. Now where are my old Kaseva and Leevi & The Leavings albums? I feel like listening to them now…while waiting for new Tolbiac songs.

Tolbiac at Soundcloud

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Finnish music, News

Nopat & Burning Hearts

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Today was a great day for Finnish pop music, because two marvellous albums came out. I already know that the Nopat album is awesome and I’m 100% sure that the Burning Hearts album is also wonderful (I will buy a copy next time I visit the 8raita record store). Unfortunately I was too busy to write a proper news entry today, so I just give you the soundbites this time around. I will write about these within a week or two.

Nopat: Kadun tuolla puolella

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/34167893″ iframe=”true” /]
 
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/32142602″ iframe=”true” /]
 
Nopat Website

Burning Hearts: Extinctions

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/32193643″ iframe=”true” /]
 
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/13845336″ iframe=”true” /]
 

Burning Hearts Website

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International music, News, Power Pop

Cirrone – Uplands Park Road

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Cirrone from Italy was a big hit in the power pop world last year and most of my favourite power pop blogs featured Cirrone’s Uplands Park Road album on their year-end lists. For example the wonderful Powerpopaholic.com rated is as the best album of the year 2011. This beauty of an album has been playing in my headphones for the last week or so and I can fully agree with all of my favourite blogs. This is one hell of a classic power pop album. A bit of 70’s power pop like Badfinger or Blue and a bit of 90’s power pop things and a whole lot of catchy pop songs. Varies from great rockin’ pop songs to beautiful pop ballads and everything works. This album is again a perfect reminder that (power) pop music is still the sweetest form of art as far as I’m concerned. Simple things are often the greatest and I think Uplands Park Road would have hit my top 10 albums of the year list, if I had heard it in time. This has so many amazing pop songs that it’s almost ridiculous. I could just pick any song, but let’s go with the opener Here Is My Song. Listen to the whole album on their bandcamp.

Cirrone at Bandcamp

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