The Corin Tucker Band

Heard a bit about The Corin Tucker Band on NPR this morning and liked what I heard. A former member of Sleator-Kinny, Corin Tucker's 1,000 Years is a solid lo-fi rocker.

Doubt

Free Sampler: Winston's Essentials: A Polyvinyl Sampler

Just listened to a new free sampler available on Amazon MP3, Winston's Essentials: A Polyvinyl Sampler and I liked it quite a bit. I particularly liked the Of Montreal song:

Coquet Coquette

and the Loney, Dear song is cool too:

Take My Hand

Give it a try!

Breathless

A veteran British band, Breathless has been around since the early 80s, with a pretty static lineup. Their dark, moody sound really stikes a cord and their Blue Moon record is very nice.

Walk Down To The Water
Wave After Wave

Over And Over

Breathless | Myspace Music Videos

Amanda Palmer

What fun! What does the map of Tasmania remind you of? You'll never guess what it reminds Amanda Palmer of :) I've already ordered my copy of "Amanda Palmer Goes Down Under"...

Anna Ternheim

A few years back, I went to a show that featured El Perro Del Mar and Lykkie Li, but it was the opener, who I had never heard of before, that really blew me away. Anna Ternheim opened with a purely acoustic set and her voice and intricate lyrics captured me. And her amazing cover of China Girl locked me away forever! I've been a huge fan ever since and am hoping for a new album soon.

China Girl
Girl Laying Down

You Mean Nothing To Me Any More

Tennis

An early favorite for the shortlist of great 2011 albums is the Denver band Tennis' debut, Cape Dory. Again with that almost 50s sound, poppy and clean.

Marathon

South Carolina

Ellie Goulding

Listening along on the Hype Machine led me to this very nice song by Ellie Goulding, a British vocalist with a great voice.

Lights

and another nice effort:

Believe Me

Guns and Horses

Le Futur Pompiste

A Finnish band of 5, Le Futur Pompiste recently released their self-titled first album. A full, confident sound reminiscent of Stereolab, this song made AllMusic.com's 52 Songs for 2010 list:

Five Hundred Heartbeats

The Dresden Dolls

It has been too long since I played some Dresden Dolls! Both Brian Vigilione and Amanda Palmer have gone on to make some pretty sweet music themselves, but together they were (are?) dynamite! And what a show they put on! Anyway, here's one cut from each of their 4 albums:

Truce (A Is For Accident - 2003)The Jeep Song (The Dresden Dolls - 2004)
Sing (Yes, Virginia - 2006)
Pretty In Pink (No, Virginia... - 2008)

The Jolly Boys

Another great cover by The Jolly Boys, this time of an Iggy Pop standard.

Braids

You can stream Braids' debut album, Native Speaker, here! This Canadian band was one of Spin magazine's 5 Best New Artists For January. They have a dreamy, Animal Collective-like pop sound and I like it a lot.

BRAIDS - Native Speaker by BRAIDS

2010 Singles of the Year

Download Vehement Flame 2010 Singles mp3 (57mb - 1 hour 6 mins)
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So this is my list of my favorite singles for 2010. These are all the songs not found on any of the albums of the year (a podcast coming soon!). They span a nice set of styles, from the electronica of 28 degrees taurus to the sound of the year in my opinion, the girl pop of Allo Darlin' and The Pipettes. I have to admit to one "cheat" - How German Is It's "Giving Up The Ghost" is officially a 2009 song, but I first heard it on the wonderful Per Captia sampler, which unfortunately isn't currently free but still well worth the $8 I think. This came out late in 2010 and it counts!

While they didn't make my album of the year list, several of these are really good albums too. There is no better "twee pop" than Allo Darlin's debut or the almost disco-like sound of The Pipettes or the Like. Cameron Mesirow, (aka glasser) use her voice to a remarkable extent on most of the songs. The entire How German It Is album is solid, as is the 28 degrees taurus one.

I've put in links to the music you can download for free. Please check them out!

Playlist
00:00:23 Rill Rill (Treats) - Sleigh Bells
00:04:13 Lemon Tree (El Turista) - Josh Rouse
00:07:18 Polaroid Song (Allo Darlin') - Allo Darlin'
00:11:32 Call Me (Earth vs.The Pipettes) - The Pipettes
00:14:22 Apply (Ring) - glasser
00:19:22 Alone At The Pier (Maintenant) - Gigi
00:22:41 Hand Me Down Your Love (One Life Stand) - Hot Chip
00:27:15 You Must Be Out Of Your Mind (Realism) - Magnetic Fields
00:30:27 Giving Up The Ghost (The Seasonal) - How German It Is

00:33:49 Electricity (all the stars in your eyes) - 28 degrees taurus
00:37:39 Everyone Feels That Way Sometimes - Computer Magic
00:43:49 Revival (Halcyon Digest) - Deerhunter
00:46:01 The Original Great Recession Math Champions (Radiant City) - Good Old Neon
00:51:41 He's Not A Boy (Release Me) - The Like
00:54:16 Grace (Burying The Dead) - Richard McGraw
00:59:20 Heavy Feeling (Heavy Feeling) - Justine Bennett
01:03:07 Scissor Runner (Jenny and Johnny) - Jenny and Johnny

Freelance Whales

I really enjoyed Freelance Whales debut release last year, Weathervanes (it's on sale for on US$5 - click the image on the left to support Vehement Flame!). Especially this song:

Generator ^ Second Floor

They have released a new single on Green Label Music and you can grab it here.

Enzymes

Along with a very nice video:

Enzymes

Clare Maguire

Clare Maguire has a simply splendid voice. As some have said, a bluesy version of Sinead O'Connor, she can really belt it out. She had a single out last year:

Strangest Thing

And she's released a new single from her upcoming debut, Light After Dark:

The Last Dance

Here's another single she released last year:

Ain't Nobody

Shrag

A bright poppy indie band from Brighton England, Shrag recently released their first real full length album, Life! Death! Prizes! in October. Love the sound and the video is one of my favorites from 2010.

Tights In August

Rabbit Kids

Kate Bush

Wow! Just wow! One of my very favorite Kate Bush songs, The Big Sky, now has a video available in 720p HD. The video is really great, with a very sexy Kate dancing around in one of my favorite outfits, a jumpsuit. A very shiny silver one, even. Good stuff! Be sure to watch it in fullscreen HD.

Big Sky

The School

In the seemingly endless stream of very 50s sounding bands, The School stands out with some real clever beats. Here's a couple cuts from their 2010 release, Loveless Unbeliever:

Let It Slip

Is He Really Coming Home

THE SCHOOL "IS HE REALLY COMING HOME?" from POPFRENZY HQ on Vimeo.

Cut Copy

Been a long busy holiday period, but I'm back to music blogging and listening to some great sounds. Here's a new song from the Australian trio Cut Copy:

Where I'm Going