This week in new music sees SF-originated the Brian Jonestown Massacre speaking in tongues (not really) with thirteenth release "Aufheben" and the Mowgli Sound The Drum with its debut album featuring the song "San Francisco." Move it or lose it, city slicks!<!--break-->
Lower Dens: Nootropics
Baltimore's weird-fi, bass driven Lower Dens returns with its sophomore effort Nootropics.
Led by vocalist and songwriter Jana Hunter, the band is back with its usual dark and ghostly vibes however, epically more substantial sounding. Hunter spans the scale with her androgynous vocals, able to be both ethereal and guttural from one interval to the next. An audible yearning can be felt while Hunter's voice reaches certain heights – the effect is both chilling and deserving of a swoon.
Persistent percussion and fuzzy guitars round out the Lower Dens' sound, making for a mood-changing record – good or bad, you decide.
Santigold: Master of My Make-Believe
Now known as Santigold with an I – previously she was Santogold with an O – Santi White is back in the spotlight with Master of My Make-Believe. This highly-anticipated release follows a significant studio absence from the Philadelphia-born electro-rock star – her debut album dropped back in 2008.
Enlisting creative collaborations from the likes of Karen O (featured on single "Go!") and Nick Zinner of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, David Sitek of TV on the Radio and Diplo, Santigold proves that sometimes it truly is worth the wait.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre: Aufheben
Stream here.
The Brian Jonestown Massacre's Aufheben was recorded in Berlin and in German the word itself has several contradictory definitions. "To abolish" and "to preserve" are the most prevalent meanings, giving the album an underlying social subtext.
The music itself is what one would normally expect from BJM – psychedelic sounds, groovy melodies and smooth vocals.
Original BJM member Matt Hollywood joined back up with band leader Anton Newcombe for Aufheben – BJM's thirteenth studio release and the follow-up to 2010's Who Killed Sgt. Pepper?.
The Mowgli: Sound the Drum
The Mowgli is a seven-piece band from Southern California. Full of love and soul, the group's debut album Sound The Drum is energetic and easy – worthy of campfire sing-alongs and that long drive up the coast.
Song "San Francisco" is a love letter to The City complete with doo-doo-doos, proclamations of losing one's head, and smiling rainclouds – we've all been there, right?
Reptar: Body Faucet
First off, yes, the band is named after that cartoon dinosaur from the '90s kid show Rugrats.
Straight out of Athens, Georgia with its debut full-length release, Reptar hits the ground running with Body Faucet.
Fun and powerful pop, Body Faucet is full of rock you'll want to clap your hands to. A dancey trek into African-inspired melodies and sounds, the new album evokes sun-drenched visions and a thirst for fruity drinks.