Today's Hotness: Funeral Advantage, Her Magic Wand, Break Up Flowers

>> We've persistently loved our idea of what M83 could be more than we actually loved M83 itself. The France-spawned but now LA-based project helmed by Anthony Gonzalez edged close to some sort of New Order-ish ideal (of an electropop band that irresistibly incorporated guitars into a dreamy sound) with its 2008 breakthrough Saturdays = Youth, and particularly its arresting single "Graveyard Girl." But Gonzalez had and has his own desires and agenda, and while these led him to great success with his succeeding albums, they never quite intersected with what we wanted the band to be. This continually crossed our mind in recent weeks as we listened obsessively to the flawless debut long-player from Boston dream-pop gigantes Funeral Advantage. The 10-song set Body Is Dead would seem to take "Graveyard Girl" as a stylistic jumping-off point to a certain extent, and the results are perfection. We discussed two preview singles, "Sisters" and "Gardensong," here in July. But the entire record is replete with dramatic and melancholy dream-pop the likes of which aptly soundtracked certain of our John Hughes-accompanied youths. Body Is Dead opens with the sparkling, perhaps Bloc Party-inspired "Equine," which whispers its secrets into delays and reverbs while a crisp beat propels the proceedings. "Should Have Just" similarly murmurs sweet nothings a la Mr. Okereke, but the tune is spangled by steady tambourine and clean, mesopheric guitar leads. The 10-minute-plus title track warrants special notice because it takes the rhythmic and melodic elements of the rest of the record -- not to mention the serene romance -- to a logical compositional terminus, successfully applying same to create a protracted, steadily spiraling composition of pop ambience worthy of the Kompakt series (someone please commission Axel Wilner for a 20-minute remix of same). Body Is Dead will rate high in our annual year-end list of best albums. The collection is available now on LP and as a digital download from The Native Sound here, and in a limited edition of 100 cassettes from Disposable America right here. Stream the entire, stellar collection via the Bandcamp embed below.



>> When we last wrote about Parisian dream-pop project Her Magic Wand here in these electronic pages in late 2014, the act had just issued "Everything At Once," a single from a planned LP. And while that LP has not yet materialized, the act is set to release later this month its Blossom EP. The short set leads with "Everything At Once," but perhaps more notably the A-side also features a remix of same executed by Grandaddy's Jason Lytle. Somewhat coincidentally, just hours after receiving an email about Blossom from Her Magic Wand mastermind Charles Braud, the Grandaddy reunion was announced; timing! Mr. Lytle's thoughtful and balanced deconstruction of the tune layers in a thin harmony vocal, a recognizable proclivity from the ol' Grandaddy tool set, and elsewhere erects tall walls of dense guitars in the mix. The final minute of the remix swells and burbles with electronic tones, elegantly interrupting the lock-step 4/4 of the original version to create something more nuanced and expansive. The b-side to Blossom features two tunes, "Draw A Line" and "Love Letters," and the entire collection will be released via Darla on 10" vinyl and as a digital download Sept. 18 in the USA (the EP will also be released in Japan and Europe via two other labels). Mr. Braud tells us a full-length is still in the offing, and will arrive Jan. 29. In the meantime, listen to both versions of "Everything At Once" via the Soundcloud embed below, and click here to purchase the collection from Darla.



>> While many in Portland hipster circles continue to champion slick "PBR&B" [Oh my god is that a thing. -- Ed.] acts and clean-cut rock outfits, the city’s DIY scene flourishes unabated in the underground. There a wealth of inventive and expressive guitar pop bands are peaking, achieving a fever-pitch of output, and drawing deserved attention within and without the scene. And there near the fore is the trio Break Up Flowers, whose seven-song, limited-edition cassette Man Made Path streeted Aug. 11 via Brooklyn's strong Mirror Universe Tapes. The matter-of-fact jam "Take Hints" was the preview single from the collection; its spare, gritty guitar and bass lines grind against a steady, tom-heavy beat as fronter Beth Wooten's calm vocals coolly warn "just give me my two cents, just take my some of my hints." Ms. Wooten's singing recalls that marking '90s greats such as Tsunami and the many projects of Mary Timony, as well as modern practitioners such as the mighty Speedy Ortiz – groups literate and thoughtful with a subtle temper and aggression that provide ready inspiration for young women rockers (and, at least in the instant case, by design: Ms. Wooten also heads Portland’s Rock ‘n’ Roll Camp For Girls). Further, Mac Pogue's laissez-faire production work situates listeners in the cassette's earspace like the best of the no-nonsense, realist gurus including Steve Albini. The result? Not only a promising debut from the kind of band we'd like to see more of, but also a hopeful sign of things to come as the reach of the underground extends toward the overground. Man Made Path is available from Mirror Universe now, and you can stream "Take Hints" via the embed below. -- Edward Charlton

Today's Hotness: Radiator Hospital, Red Sea, Steve Hauschildt

>> Punk-pop saviors Radiator Hospital already put out one of the great power-pop releases of the year with its life-affirming Torch Song LP [review] over the summer, but the remarkably prolific operation led by Grand Rapids, Mich.-bred Sam Cook-Parrot just let loose to the indie-verse another great pair. Mr. Cook-Parrott and co. contributed two tunes to a towering four-band split from the un-eff-withable tag-team combo of Exploding In Sound and Double Double Whammy. The two Radiator Hospital tracks, "Half Empty" and "Now & Then," fall in line with the folk-y lo-fi detours that spangle last year's full-length tour de force Something Wild [review], our formal introduction to Philly collective, but are notable in that neither tune features Cook-Parrott on lead vocal. Featured alongside Radiator Hospital on the aforementioned split 7" are Boston bugcore provocateurs Krill, fuzz dynamos LVL UP and guitar-band goliaths Ovlov, making the four-way split a proverbial dream team of indie rock bliss. Those who monitor our social media spew closely have already heard Krill and Ovlov's offerings, but everyone can hear them again via the Soundcloud embed below, as well as the tunes from Radiator Hospital and LVL UP. Score the record from Double Double Whammy right here. Blue-and-yellow vinyl platters are already sold out, but the 7" is still available pressed to yellow or blue media; vinyl orders ships next month, while the digital release was earlier this week. Also of note is Mr. Cook-Parrott's current solo tour with the equally solo Allison Crutchfield of Swearin'. Local fans would be wise to note that said tour slides into the Boston area tomorrow night for a show at the Democracy Center in Harvard Square; it wraps two days later in Brooklyn. Details for the Cambridge show -- which also includes Dessert First and Pre Studded Cardigan -- can be found right here. -- Dillon Riley



>> We were bowled over by the Yardsticks for Human Intelligence EP, Red Sea's early 2014 collection of four two-year-old tracks which together formed the perfect calling card for the mysterious Atlanta-based indie rock act's skewed songcraft. Drawing from the cold but brilliant guitar sound of Women's masterful Public Strain album, Red Sea's EP arrived seemingly out of nowhere to establish the band as both highly adventurous and as possessing distinctly original songwriting. And, just as Yardsticks revealed a mysterious, guitar-driven universe contained therein, so too does the band's striking recent release In The Salon. The short set, which surfaced via Bandcamp way back on Sept. 8, is a genre-expanding effort that explores new applications of drum, bass and synth elements while also nudging the band's production into more precise focus. It is an extraordinarily singular set which boldly challenges traditional rock constructions with jazzy flourishes and unexpected twists, while still being able to get the head nodding in the same manner as, say, Talking Heads, Joy Division and Prince. Red Sea recorded In The Salon's seven tracks live in the studio, and man, the tightness, clarity and ferocity of its complex pieces are breathtaking. Opener "Life Image Module" touts sweetly sung vocals, two guitars and a bass that all seem to be playing slightly off from one another. That dynamic, of "disconnected connectedness" is an important element of In The Salon. During both "On The Marble" and "Participation" Red Sea skitters around the time signature, guitar strums and snare hits coming in front of or behind the beat, ultimately building a larger groove or melody by wholly unconventional means. "Participation" is the stunner of the set, sounding like a long lost, experimental pop piece by the two Davids in their '70s prime (Byrne and Bowie, of course) [Also, we'd argue that Red Sea's dazzling no-wave groover "Chance Arrest" would simply not be if Byrne and Robert Fripp hadn't first offered the blindingly brilliant "Under Heavy Manners." -- Ed.]. The deep, tuneful vocals and clean and jagged guitar hooks contrast against mind-blowing stick work, wherein the drummer diverts the snare in and out of time within certain bars, as if an old Aphex Twin sound card sprouted arms, grew sentient and developed a taste for the region's prized peaches. And that fantastical image, really, sums the EP up. In The Salon is the collective effort of a group of musicians so clever, they both playfully and nobly taunt listeners to join them as they dive into their own confounding, extrasensory universe. Stream the EP via the embed below and click through to purchase. -- Edward Charlton



>> We were pleased to encounter a notice recently from Brooklyn imprint Air Texture informing us that the ambient electronic musician Steve Hauschildt is co-curating the upcoming Air Texture Volume IV digital compilation. A nifty idea, the Air Texture series selects two experimental artists to compile a two-disc mix that includes both new works by the curators as well as other pieces that tickle their fancy. Air Texture Volume IV, which is co-curated by a producer named BNJMN, features two tracks from Mr. Hauschildt bookending the first disc, including the preview track "Watertowers." The glistening instrumental commences with what sounds like accelerated insect noises before introducing Hauschildt's familiar, arpeggiated synth work. The piece not long after settles on a group of interlocking synth textures that at different times evoke classic house music and the icy shoegaze of mid-period M83, all while still functioning in its entrancing, ambient context. Although the piece deviates little throughout its six minutes, it establishes a transporting, positive groove that challenges the listener to reconsider what constitutes dance music. What is EDM without the constant serial pulse of the drum machine? It's something that electronic producer Kaito explored more than a decade ago with the brilliant pair of records Special Life and Special Love [link, link]. But it's also probably something very much like "Watertowers," which you can stream via the embed below. Air Texture Volume IV will be released Nov. 3; pre-orders for the collection are not yet live, but we advise you to watch this space. Hauschildt embarks on a European tour Nov. 1, and all planned dates are listed right here. We last wrote about Hauschildt here in July 2013. -- Edward Charlton

Today's Hotness: Black Hearted Brother, The Young Leaves, Ancient Babes

>> It's the sound of getting hit full on in the face by a massive, iridescent ocean wave. It's the kind of unbridled sound that Neil Halstead fans have been waiting to hear again since the 1990s, as his musical path in recent years has taken him to more spare, serene and folk-oriented places. It's the new song from Black Hearted Brother, "(I Don't Mean To) Wonder," a dizzying debut track from an ensemble that features not only former Slowdive and Mojave 3 fronter Halstead, but also former Seefeel member, Locust proprietor and Mojave 3 producer Mark Van Hoen and Nick Holton, who has helmed a project called Holton's Opulent Oog and produced Halstead's 2012 solo collection. The three-piece will release Oct. 22 a long-player via the legendary American indie Slumberland titled Stars Are Our Home, and if the murmured attack of "(I Don't Mean To) Wonder" is any indication, it will be an amazing collection. The song's foundation is a simple cycling guitar riff, drenched in reverb and shuddering under wavering tremelo, a riff that comes and goes and forms something of a chorus around a mumbled lyric that radiates with delay and winds itself up into the titular oath, promised again and again and again. Epic is not an overstatement, and, in fact, may be an understatement. Stream the song via the embed below. Slumberland as yet is not taking pre-orders for the full-length, which contains 12 songs, but there is an email sign-up at this page where fans can get on the list to get the information first. So get with that, once you've gotten your head back together. Black Hearted Brother is planning a U.S. tour.



>> Seeing The Young Leaves' relentlessly engaging and Husker Du-channeling live set in May left us incredibly eager to hear what the band would do next, and finally we've been gifted the hook-heavy title track to the Holliston, Mass.-based indie punk trio's forthcoming third LP Alive And Well. Attentive readers will recall the song "Alive And Well" is a fist-banging anthem that was released as a single in 2012, backed with the banger "The Love Song;" the b-side isn't in the track listing for the forthcoming LP, so you're going to want to track that single down, if you haven't already. Also, while we're on the subject, it's not clear to us whether or not the single version of "Alive And Well" from Bandcamp is a different recording than the LP version you can hear via the Soundcloud embed below, but they both rock serious face so you should spend the next several hours A/B-ing them and slam-dancing in your kitchen while your roommates are trying to sleep, because fuck those roommates, right, they need to loosen up and have some fun. Another fuzzed-up rocker from the full-length is available to stream via the YouTube; check out "Drowning Pool" right here. Alive And Well will be released by Baldy Longhair Records Oct. 1 on 12" vinyl and cassette and as a digital download. The vinyl LPs will be offered on media colored "sea blue with beer haze, swamp green with sea blue and bone splatter, swamp green with purple and bone splatter and black," according to an email. The cassette release will also include a six-song demo EP titled Pond, Puppy, Bench Boy Demos. The Young Leaves formed in 2006; in addition to a few singles the trio has also released the full-lengths Big Old Me (2007) and Life Underneath (2010). The Young Leaves open a sick bill Friday night at O'Brien's in Boston that also features I Hate Our Freedom, an act featuring former members of Texas Is The Reason and Thursday, so if you somehow recover from tomorrow night's Whirr / Nothing / Soccer Mom show, that's where you need to be. In the meantime, stream "Alive And Well" until someone in your house throws a punch.



>> Depending on where you are, or where you've been, for a while there it felt like summer had stalled out. But after some less than desirable weather phenomena -- at least proximal to Clicky Clicky's West Coast compound -- summer has reestablished itself, and, yes, we've got a song for that. Try on for size the awesomely titled and echo-laden slow jam "Malcolm X In The Middle" from Vancouver, Canada's Ancient Babes. The brief but cinematic tune establishes a cool, thoughtful electro foothold within a soft dream pop atmosphere. Amid the enveloping reverb on the snare hits and vocals, and tastefully simple guitar lines, reside elements of shoegaze, as well. Chillwave? Maybe. But the arpeggiated synth work and downcast groove evoke a worldly strain of au courant digital popsters -- think French artistes such as M83 (circa Dead Cities, Red Seas & Lost Ghosts) and College. Stepping back from the analysis, we also like that that band doesn't take things too seriously. Aside from the title of this song, there's also the following question at the band's Facebook outpost: "What were the babes like in ancient times?" Damn good question, damn good... The gentle, transporting march of "Malcolm X In The Middle" is well-suited for the delightfully lazy days we're all chasing, if not experiencing; stream or download the song via the embed below. Lastly, while it doesn't reveal much about the band personnel beyond the name Samuel, Ancient Babes' Facebook page does offer a very amusing list of band interests there that we think is worth a glance. -- Edward Charlton

Today's Hotness: Her Magic Wand, Bitches

>> Parisian dream pop concern Her Magic Wand self-released Jan. 31 the remarkable Catch A Rainbow EP, a five-song set that situates dense sheets of melodic guitar chords between airy, earnest vocals and icy, electronic rhythm tracks. The resulting music will entrance fans of Slowdive or M83. Her Magic Wand is the brainchild of a fellow named Charles who is joined by a coterie of performers when performing live. Charles launched the project in 2005, and recorded but never released one previous EP, appropriately titled Rough Draft, in 2008. Both EPs can be streamed at the Her Magic Wand Virb page (yes, we are surprised as you that people still use Virb) right here. At said Virb page fans can download the murmured guitar anthem "Mistakes," which touts layers of delicious guitar reminiscent of the best Yo La Tengo tracks, but we've gotten permission to offer you the track right here below. Dig it.

Her Magic Wand -- "Mistakes" -- Catch A Rainbow EP
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[buy Catch A Rainbow from Her Magic Wand's Bandcamp page right here]

>> Readers reacted positively to the completely bonkers video we posted earlier this month from thrashy London duo Bitches for its new single, which is offically released today. The video was for the A-side, "Winner," and we're pleased to report that Bitches have agreed to let us offer one of the two B-sides to our readers. While "Winner" caused some to cite Black Flag, we feel like "Can Not Love" has a bit more dimension. It has Bitches' characteristic drum-and-bass bash 'n' throb, but in brief moments the song actually approaches tuneful -- the pair actually deploy harmony! Anyway, download "Can Not Love" below, and then click this link to buy the vinyl single via the band's Big Cartel store.

Bitches -- "Can Not Love" -- "Winner" b/w "Sleepwalk" and "Can Not Love"
[right click and save as]
[buy the "Winner" single here]

Today's Hotness: M83, Johnny Foreigner, Ecstatic Sunshine

>> That new M83 single is brilliant, innit? Less bleary and more pop than the stuff we recall from the prior record, although we must admit having a hard time differentiating M83 and Amusement Parks On Fire in our memories. But "Graveyard" is a perfect synthesis of New Order and The Cure and big melodic washes and ringing guitars that we have been constantly searching for over the last 22 years (we date our interest in indie music to the release of The Cure's Standing On A Beach). Check out the video for "Graveyard" posted above. Mute unleashes M83's fifth studio album Saturdays = Youth, from which the single is taken, Tuesday. M83 plays The Middle East in Cambridge, Mass. Monday June 2; you can review all of the tour dates at the M83 YouTube page here.

>> So not only does Johnny Foreigner's forthcoming debut full-length now have a release date, it has a whole other market. The hotly anticipated Waited Up 'Til It Was Light will be issued in the UK June 2. On the same day it will also be issued in Japan on the Fabtone Records label, through a deal disclosed Friday. Fabtone has released in Japan records by notable Western indie rockers Dirty On Purpose and The Lodger. The Japanese release of Waited Up 'Til It Was Light will have two bonus tracks (we bet we know one of them, a cover, just guessing) and shmancier art work. We're sure we'll buy it for a crazy amount off EBay. To punctuate the Birmingham, England-based trio's conquest of Japan it will play the SummerSonic festival in Japan August 9. If you've read guitarist Alexei Berrow's March missive in DrownedInSound you know dude and his honchos Kelly and Junior just rock, smoke, drink and record rock, all with little rest and occasional illness. We can't imagine plying their wares is going to get Johnny Foreigner any more rest, but perhaps they'll be able to sleep on the plane? As we've reported over and over, Waited Up 'Til It Was Light will be preceded May 19 by the single "Eyes Wide Terrified," the video of which we posted below some days ago before our laptop exploded. See this little square picture to the left? It's the sleeve art for "Eyes Wide Terrified." 'Tis small, but it is obviously another Lewes Herriot design that we can't wait to see rendered in a seven-inch square. Anyway, what with the band's third single "Our Bipolar Friends" selling out, here's an MP3.

Johnny Foreigner -- "Our Bipolar Friends" -- "Our Bipolar Friends" b/w "The House Party Scene Is Killing You"
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[buy the entire single at EMusic here]

>> The smoldering track "Herrons" from Baltimore trio Ecstatic Sunshine's newly released sophomore collection Way has been moving us this morning. We never reviewed the band's 2006 debut on Carpark, but we certainly listened to it a lot. And while Freckle Wars featured tunes constructed by trebly, slithering guitars, "Herrons" displays a decidedly murkier -- even Fennesz-esque -- Ecstatic Sunshine. The band's recently enlarged line-up (it had formerly been a duo) apparently hasn't resulted in more slithering. In fact, at this point the act touts only co-founder Matt Papich on guitar, while co-founder Dustin Wong and new-ish Kieran Gillan wrangle electronics and loops. "Herrons" was recently PantsCasted and you can catch the stream at IMeem here. Highly recommended. You can download Freckle Wars and the acclaimed EP Living from EMusic here, and we don't expect it will be too long before you can get the three-track full-length Way -- which was issued by Cardboard Records Tuesday -- there as well. Ecstatic Sunshine will be on tour from April 17 through May 17. There's no Boston date among those currently booked; review all of the dates at the band's MySpace cabin here.

>> As we reported previously, Glaswegian indie rock quartet Frightened Rabbit will return to the U.S. next month to support the release of The Midnight Organ Fight. The dates have now been disclosed and we post them below as a public service. The boys curiously start things off and round them out in Ohio on May 28 and June 11 respectively. Between those two dates Frightened Rabbit heads up and down, but not to either coast. Anyway, The Midnight Organ Fight will be released digitally this week; a manufacturing delay apparently is keeping the physical product off of North American shelves until April 29, which means you can use your tax return to pick it up. We reviewed the band's two recent Boston shows here and here respectively, and in the event you missed it, here is our review of the new record.

05.28 -- Cleveland, OH -- Grog Shop
05.29 -- Chicago, IL -- Double Door
05.30 -- Madison, WI -- High Noon Saloon
05.31 -- Minneapolis, MN -- 400 Bar
06.01 -- Chicago, IL -- Do Division Festival*
06.02 -- Kansas City, MO -- Record Bar
06.04 -- Dallas, TX -- Granada Theatre
06.05 -- Austin, TX -- The Mohawk
06.06 -- Houston, TX -- Walters
06.07 -- Baton Rouge, LA -- Spanish Moon
06.09 -- Birmingham, AL -- Bottletree
06.10 -- Nashville, TN -- Exit/In
06.11 -- Columbus, OH -- The Basement

That Which Is Good: Stand-Out Stuff Found In Our Inbox

>> Super Collider's Cristian Vogel has formed a new band called Night Of The Brain, and the quartet will release its 10-song debut Wear This World Out, written and recorded in Barcelona, Tuesday. The teaser MP3 "The Theme" is very strong, a dreamy tune driven by a thumping bass line and draped with various computer-crafted textures. "The Theme" succeeds by remaining true to a hard-to-name but unsettled mood for four-and-a-half minutes, even as bassist Mike Hermann takes a bit of an odd solo or as drummer Cristobal Massis begins more urgently beating his crash cymbal at the song's close. Check it out.

Night Of The Brain -- "The Theme" -- Wear This World Out
[right click and save as; check out the video here]
[buy Wear This World Out from Kompakt-MP3 here, eventually]

>> We dug very much Foundry Field Recordings 2006 set Prompts/Miscues, particularly the wistful strummer "Buried Beneath The Winter Frames," so we were excited to see news of the band's next record. The Columbia, MO-based quartet's new EP Fallout Stations is termed a "companion piece" to Prompts/Miscues and includes both new tracks and rarities all relative to the concept of the 2006 collection (which we recall as being a Cold War/robots are going to get us kind of thing, although honestly it's been months since we've listened to it). Anyway, "Transistor Kids" is the preview track from Fallout Stations. It commences slowly with a long piano introduction, then snaps to attention with a beat, guitars and vocals that indeed make the track sound part and parcel of the earlier record. Fallout Stations streets Tuesday on Emergency Umbrella and the band plans to tour widely in July and August.

Foundry Field Recordings -- "Transistor Kids" -- Fallout Stations
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[buy Fallout Stations for Newbury Comics here]

>> This album stream of the self-titled debut from Austin-based quintet Peel may be the nicest surprise of our spelunking trip into our virtual mail bin. It's dense and melodic and distorted and loud and has buried vocals and it sounds like 100 different hungry indie bands from 1994, cut with a healthy dose of millennial digital trickery. Wow, glancing at their press, that's pretty much what The Onion said about them, too. Anyway, people seem to want to call these guys post-Pavement, which we suppose is passable, but we'd argue that Peel offers more of a garagey Monkees-ish melodicism and Flaming Lips-esque thrash. And then later in the record they toss in a little AM Gold stuff as well. Peel isn't actually too far removed from excellent Oklahoma-based trio Evangelicals, now that we think about it. You would do well to check out the Peel below. The band goes on tour for a couple weeks beginning June 8, and given how solid their album is we think it's worth heading out to see them, so we're posting the dates, too. Alas, there's no Boston date, but this isn't all about us, is it? Peel's Peel was released on Peek-A-Boo April 2, and shouldn't be confused with the also excellent Coctails record Peel.

Peel -- "Oxford" -- Peel
Peel -- "In The City" -- Peel
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[buy Peel from Newbury Comics here]

06/08 -- Denton, TX -- Hailey’s
06/09 -- Shreveport, LA -- Jackrabbit Lounge
06/10 -- Mobile, AL -- Cell Block
06/11 -- Birmingham, AL -- The Nick
06/12 -- Atlanta, GA -- Smith's Olde Bar
06/13 -- Wilmington, NC -- Bella Festa
06/14 -- Washington, DC -- The Black and the Red
06/15 -- Brooklyn, NY -- The Battering Room
06/16 -- New York, NY -- Piano's
06/17 -- New York, NY -- Piano's
06/20 -- Fort Wayne, IN -- The Firehouse
06/21 -- Chicago, IL -- The Darkroom

>> We liked very much this video preview of the forthcoming Montag set Going Places, which Carpark releases Tuesday. The video was apparently created in conjunction with Secret Mommy mastermind Andrew Dixon; longtime readers may recall we greatly enjoyed sampletronica project Secret Mommy's collection Very Rec and wrote about it here for Junkmedia a couple years ago. Going Places is Montrealer (or Vancouverite, depending on which sentence of his bio you believe) Antoine Bédard's third Montag record, and the collection contains input from notable indie luminaries including M83 and Amy Millan, among others. Bédard's blend of pastich and electropop is very enjoyable. The title track from the his new set is a romantic yearner that reminds us of a contemporary take on Yaz. "Best Boy Electric" is more upbeat, even jubilant, as if the narrator from "Going Places" has finally secured the reassurances he longs for so badly from the object of his affection. Again, the track sounds like Yaz or early, more innocent Depeche Mode.

Montag -- "Going Places" -- Going Places
Montag -- "Best Boy Electric" -- Going Places
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[buy Going Places from Newbury Comics here]