Laughing Lights of Plenty - Whatever We Want - 2008

I've been loving the new release from Whatever We Want records, the label that boasts Map of Africa and Quiet Village on their roster. Their latest is the debut 12" single for Laughing Lights of Plenty who are Thomas Bullock (Rub n Tug, Map of Africa) and Eddie Ruscha.

Check it out at their Myspace page.

cd - T2 - Early 70's Psyche & Prog

T2 were an early British psychedelic prog-rock band that really would have benefitted from the internet. The story goes that T2 opened for EVERYONE between 1969-1970 and was destined to be the next Cream, or at the very least the next Deep Purple. But, alas, there was a problem printing the album and it wasn't released on wax until six months after it's schedule release date. The moment had passed for T2 and nobody paid attention to their eponymous effort.

It's too bad, because T2 is great psyche album that sounds like what would have happened if all the good parts of the Moody Blues went and got baked with Traffic and Cream. I don't name-check these bands lightly. They pull off every trick in the psyche book, from a mix so atrocious it must have been deliberate to unintelligible high-chanting vocals that trail into the guitar's tremelo.

I first heard T2 on a CD... here is the track cd from T2.

Listen to cd (zshare) by T2.

Kids - MGMT (Soulwax Remix) - 2008

Soulwax remixes MGMT in an incredibly generic effort. It's a shame because I enjoyed the Soulwax remixes of both Gossip and Gorillaz. I wish there was more to say about this one, but I think once you listen to the track you'll understand why I could take it or leave it.

Listen to Kids (zshare) by MGMT (Soulwax Remix.)

Restiform Bodies - TV Loves You Back - Anticon - 2008

Finally got to the new Restiform Bodies full-length TV Loves You Back and I'm pleasantly surprised to enjoy it. To borrow a baseball term, Tv Loves You Back is effectively wild: all over the place, but still close enough to the strike zone to draw some wild cuts. It's breakcore & grime, chopped and stewed with pop hooks and a barrage of hip-hop. There's a ton of tracks I'd like to post off the album, but I'll just post a couple that are already available on the web.

A Pimp-like God has college radio anthem written all over it, straddling deliberate verse with the most danceable refrain on the album. It's followed up with Consumer Culture Wave a jam that answers the question of what Hot Chip would sound like if they were glitched up in dub. I highly reccommend the rest of this album... if you like it, buy it!

Listen to A Pimp-Like God (zshare) by Restiform Bodies.
Listen to Consumer Culture Wave (zshare) by Restiform Bodies.

Also:
Anticon Records
Restiform Bodies on Myspace

House Jam - Gang Gang Dance - The Social Registry - 2008

Whoa. If you have any psychedelics lying around, go ahead and take them now. This is a track Syd Barret would be proud of, replete with steel drums, glitched-up synths, and, of course, the creepy Gang Gang lady screaming something about revolution. I was a huge fan of Gang Gang Dance's last EP, Rawwar, and can't wait for what's next.

Listen to House Jam (Single Version) (zshare) by Gang Gang Dance
Listen to Oxygen Demo Riddum (zshare; from Rawwar) by Gang Gang Dance