The Walrus is a Philadelphia-based music blog written by Michael. You may send me stuff through the send a tip page or email me. All mp3s should be sent as links. NO ATTACHMENTS, PLEASE. If I like your music, chances are I will write about it.
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mp3s on this site are for promotional purposes only. If you wish to have an mp3 removed please contact me.
After all of your Thanksgiving shenanigans are over have your family sit their fat-asses down in front of the tube and turn on IFC for some good ol’ fashioned holiday entertainment…and by entertainment I mean the ridiculous new documentary Goth Cruise. Yes that’s right kiddies, this “gothumentary” features hordes of princes and princesses of darkness vacationing upon those mighty vessels that were once thought by some to be traditional vacation voyages. That is, until now.
I wonder if Bauhaus will start gigging for Carnival Cruises…Fittingly, Goth Cruise premieres at midnight on the 27th on IFC.
Pink Stallone are from New Jersey. Wait, let me say that again. Pink Stallone are from New Jersey. If this just made you go cross-eyed it’s understandable considering that this unsigned group makes sweet Italo-esque electro tunes merged with exploding and imploding computer-chip graphics, as is the case with “Red Cape”. Nope, not your typical Jersey-ites:
I can’t say I’m a huge fan of Vampire Weekend, but anything involving Chromeo sounds good to me…and in this case it sounds great. The loveable duo recently remixed VW’s oh-so-Police-esque tune “The Kids Don’t Stand A Chance” giving it a fresh coat of sexy 80’s synth funk.
The two groups also performed a slightly different, but no less endearing version during the MTVu Woodie Awards, which you can check out below:
Vampire Weekend’s s/t debut and Chromeo’s Fancy Footwork are available now on Amazon.
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Our dear friends over at Art in the Age interviewed LA’s No Age during a recent stop at Philly’s First Unitarian Church. The gents spoke candidly about their T-shirt collaboration with the brand, their religious views and the desire to change the face of nacho creation forever. Check it out:
Visit No Age’s blog to see pics of the band at the store and pick up their awesome T-shirt “String Break ‘08″ from AITA.
No Age’s acclaimed album Nouns is available now from Insound.
No, Swedish chanteuse Lykke Li and hip-hop genius Q-Tip did not make a surprise appearance at Philly’s most popular local gay bar, but rather at the MTVu Awards Show, known as “The Woodies” performing the Tribe Called Quest classic “Can I Kick It?” together! To answer your question, Lykki, you certainly can:
You can watch another awesome collaboration from Vampire Weekend and Chromeo over at YANP and more highlights from this year’s Woodies at MTVu’s video page.
If you have yet to get into the dark-disco sound of Portland’s The Chromatics, then I have only one question for you. What the hell are you waiting for? Their music is a cinematic melange of sex, violence, mystery, more sex, more mystery, and every other cool word you can think of…so what’s not to love?
Recently, I chatted with lead singer Ruth Radelet about The Chromatics recording process, their live shows, the future of the band and other top-secret stuff. Check it out:
Fight Bite, an unsigned band from Denton, Texas, is making waves…dreamy, dreamy waves across the music blogs with their song “Swissex Lover” and it’s accompanying video. It has a 4AD/Sinead O’Connor vibe going on, along with superimposed footage of old news reels and the like. History has never been so sexy…or creepy:
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What can I say about The Notwist that I haven’t said already? I love these German dudes and their newest record, The Devil, You + Me, is one of my favorites this year (top albums post coming soon!).
One of the record’s biggest highlights, and there are many, is the new single “Boneless” with Markus’s always humble vocals set against a loopy backdrop. It’s a simple song that captivates as it gradually piles on beautiful layers of wind-swept sound. Seriously, if this song was a girl, I’d totally “bone” her. The Panda Bear remix ain’t toooo shabby either (probably just make-out with that one).
Check out the interview I conducted with the band last month and of course you should purchase the 7″ single and album now from Domino.
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The German based label Morr Music, founded by music-a-holic Thomas Morr, was at the center of my listening universe during the early 2000’s, but for the past few years it has been rather quiet.
However, now their shy period has officially come to an end with the release of the eponymous debut EP from New Zealand’s Surf City. Muffled power-pop chants buried in beautiful guitar noise is just what this label needed. No further explanation required, just listen to the two awesome tracks below. Thomas Morr, I salute you!
Grab Surf City’s EP over at at the Morr Music shop this instant!
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Our first true taste of Animal Collective’s upcoming album Merriweather Post Pavillion spilled onto the web late last night. Embedded in a podcast on French music site Les Inrocks (podcast now removed) and subsequently ripped by rabid fans, “Brothersport” may in fact be the best song to come from the Collective in a while…Have a listen before it’s too late…
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No one likes Mondays but Denmark’s No and the Maybes make it a little more tolerable with their sweetly harmonic and finger-snappin new single “Monday.” The song is reminiscent of Smile-era Beach Boys and the sounds of Swedish pop stalwarts like Legends and Acid House Kings.
The video, directed by Michael Panduro, heightens the beauty of the music with its playful, surrealistic stop-motion storytelling. Maybe Mondays aint so bad after all!
Grab an mp3 from No and the Maybes here and stay tuned for info about the domestic release of their highly recommended debut album.
Not only do they have some of the best promo pics around, but Rhode Island’s Deertick also have one of the best songs around.
“Long Time” from the soon-to-be reissued, previously limited 2007 album War Elephant, reeks of classic country and wide-eyed youth. Songwriter John McCauley III not only wrote and recorded this when he was 20, but he also played all of the song’s (and album’s) instruments. It’s a perfect mix of old Wilco and CCR, and though it’s fairly new, it sounds as if it has been here all along.
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