Wire - Bad Worn Thing

The new Wire record Red Barked Tree is beautiful. It's out next month. 'Bad Worn Thing' is below, more from the record is here.

06 Bad Worn Thing by Popfrenzy

Life With Patrick - Nothing In Your Heart / Favour

I found this on the Captured Tracks blog, a 12" from 1990 from this British band who seem invisible on the internet. Both the A-side and B-side are great.

Have a look at CT's blog, this month they posted a lot of old, obscure singles from the 80's that they're thinking of reissuing. I found some very cool stuff there.

Life With Patrick - Nothing In Your Heart 12" (1990) by youandmeintheecho

McLusky - Falco Vs. The Young Canoeist

A track from McLusky's final record The Difference Between You And Me Is That I'm Not On Fire. I wish they were still together making records.

Mclusky- Falco vs. the young canoeist by peesmith

Aafje Heynis - Go To Sleep

Aafje Heynis is a Dutch singer that got compared with Kathleen Ferrier. She recorded five British folksongs in 1960 and released it on 7". She won the Harriet Cohen International Music Award with these recordings in 1961. I think this song is really sweet, sometimes I cannot listen to it.

Image by Nikos Doulos.

Aafjeheynis Go To Sleep by youandmeintheecho

Fujiya & Miyagi - Spilt Milk

Another track from Fujiya & Miyagi's new LP Ventriloquizzing. It's out at the end of next month. I will go to a record shop to buy it. It's that good.

Photo by Das Banale Ding.

Track removed by request.

End of the Year List

I'm not a fan of making end of the year lists of my favourite records. There are always records I'd like to add after two months. So in this post just some tracks from records I loved this year.

The one that went straight to my heart is Forest Swords' Dagger Paths. With time this record proved to be the most heartbreaking and addictive. Also Women's second LP Public Strain got a lot of spins here, as well as These New Puritans' second LP. I like Halcyon Digest from Deerhunter a lot but I'm more a fan of Microcastle.

Some of the best tracks this year were singles and free downloads. Especially The Neat, Electricity In Our Homes, The Victorian English Gentlemens Club and Prinzhorn Dance School came up with the smartest and most original songs. And then there is this beautiful Crystal Stilts 7" that promises a great record in 2011.

Forest Swords 'If Your Girl' from Dagger Paths:

Women 'Heat Distraction' from Public Strain:

These New Puritans 'Attack Music' from Hidden:

Wild Nothing 'Chinatown' from Gemini:

The Neat 'In Youth Is Pleasure':

Electricity In Our Homes 'You're Doing So Well':

The Victorian English Gentlemens Club - A Biting Wind Followed By An Occasional Drift Of Snow (Was No Way To Cure A Hangover):

Crystal Stilts 'Shake The Shackles':

Prinzhorn Dance School 'Seed, Crop, Harvest':

Weekend 'End Times' from Sports:

Deerhunter 'Coronado' from Halcyon Digest:

Hatcham Social 'New York Girl':

Frankie Rose & The Outs 'Candy':

Stereolab - Silver Sands (Emperor Machine Mix) from Not Music:

Lonelady - 'Early The Haste Comes' from Nerve Up:

Young Henry - Paint Fumes

'Paint Fumes' is the best track from Young Henry's EP U/N. It's available from bandcamp.

Photo by Adrian Brun from Das Banale Ding.

Young Henry - Paint Fumes by youandmeintheecho

Tools You Can Trust - Messy Body Thrust

Throwing Muses - Film

Throwing Muses are currently in the studio recording a new record. It's completely funded by fans, there's no record company involved. Kristin Hersh released a new demo every month of 2010. With subscriptions through her CASH Music website, the band came alive after a 7 year hiatus

I've been a subcriber now for 2 years. It's the best bill I have to pay, I actually know the money is going somewhere good, somewhere where my heart is. It's very cool to be involved and see such a talented singer-songwriter go her own path.

Below the stream of the last demo in this series, 'Film'. For the mp3, an essay about the song and more information on how you can support Throwing Muses go to throwingmuses.cashmusic.org/.

Throwing Muses are also releasing free sessions every season with songs from older records getting a 2010 approach. The 'Winter' 6 track session is here. It includes 'Colder' from House Tornado, the great 'Hook In Her Head' and a sharp version of 'Soap & Water' (also streaming below).

Throwing Muses - Film (Demo) by youandmeintheecho
Throwing Muses - Soap & Water (Season Session) by youandmeintheecho

Atlas Sound - Artificial Snow

Atlas Sound released this single on his blog today, 5 different versions of the same song. Download from Deerhunter's blog.

There's also a beautiful Atlas Sound session streaming on Pitchfork.

Atlas Sound - Artificial Snow (Notown Version) by youandmeintheecho

Àëåêñåé ‹ûáíèêîâ - Ìëå÷íûé Ïóòü

This is the soundtrack from an old Russian outer space movie. For more info and a download of the 7", visit the excellent Toys and Techniques blog.

02 Ìëå÷íûé Ïóòü by lightactivity

PJ Harvey - The Last Living Rose (Video)

Moon Wiring Club - Queen Of Puddings

Moon Wiring Club's new record is great, I'm listening to it a lot. You should check out his website here. More tracks from the record are here.

Gene - Haunted By You

Waskerley Way - Gâteau / New Norse

The tracks below are from Waskerley Way's latest EP Energy Legs, available from his bandcamp. Another EP, Holly, is free and here.

Fujiya & Miyagi - Minestrone

The new F&M leaked this week, it's v e r y good. You can listen to the track 'Minestrone' below and get it from Mu-Sique.

Pre order now from Full Time Hobby and get an instant download of the 38 min remix album Different Blades From The Same Pair Of Scissors.

Track removed by request.

Matthew Herbert - Dublin (Video)

A new video from Matthew Herbert's record One One. Also a video by Matthew with a request for sounds he's gonna use for a soundtrack.

R.E.M. - Discoverer (Stream)

Since Around The Sun I hold my breath when R.E.M. releases a new single, but this new track from the forthcoming LP Collapse Into Now sounds quite good, alive. I liked the last album a lot too and it seems like they continue that sound based on 'Discoverer'. Last week I listened to some 90's R.E.M. records, Monster and New Adventures, they are really good, but I'm still more a fan of the 80's stuff.

Below the stream. You can get the mp3 from R.E.M.'s website.

Wetdog - Tidy Up Your Bedroom

Frauhaus! from Wetdog is one of my favourite records of the year. You have to check out the great video for the single 'Wyminn's Final', it's here. Below another track from the record and a live video.

Soft Healer - Live At Beerland

Soft Healer are busy with new work, next year they'll release a new 7" plus a full length in spring. Below a video from their performance at Beerland in their hometown Austin with an interview. Also below the b-side from their first single Gentle One, the sweet and carefully built up 'Movie Light'.

Soft Healer - Movie Light by youandmeintheecho

Moon Wiring Club - A Spare Tabby At The Cat's Wedding

Moon Wiring Club's music is spooky, related to the Ghost Box label that recently put out a series of 'study' split singles, with Broadcast And The Focus Group being the most famous entry. The music is close to Boards Of Canada with sampled breakbeats but they add samples from occult children's television and old films. The result is excellent, it really drew me in. And it's also very weird. Something unexpected can happen at any time. They released this album on CD and vinyl, both formats have almost the same tracklist but the music is different on each format.

They also have a cool website with a lot of artwork and intriguing background information about the band and it's members, take a look here. You can order both formats from Moon Wiring Club in a bundle with no postage charges here.

Below two tracks off the CD format, 'Slumberwick Dreams' and 'The Queen Speaks'.

slumberwick dreams -moon wiring club by Christos M.

moon wiring cllub The Queen Speaks by youandmeintheecho

Fujiya & Miyagi - YoYo (Video)

'You go up and go down like a yo yo', the simple and effective chorus in this new F&M video.

The track comes from the new album 'Ventriloquizzing' which is out in January. More from that record is here.

Wise Blood - Loud Mouths

'Loud Mouths' is a track from Wise Blood's LP that's out next year. The limited 7" Solo ('4' Clair) / Rot My Brain Away was released by Transparent last month and is still available here.

You can get the mp3 from Transparent.

Wise Blood - Loud Mouths by youandmeintheecho

Guards - Guards EP

Guard's limited 7" EP is out December 15th. 'Sail It Slow' features Cults. Listen and download the whole EP at bandcamp. Below the 2 best tracks.

Red Sea - Middle Name

I'm listening a lot to Red Sea's EP Weird Problem. It's better than I thought. The whole EP is streaming on their bandcamp page. Below 'Middle Name'.

Puro Instinct - Stilyagi / Put Medved To Bedved 7"

The new Puro Instinct 7" is available now from the Mexican Summer shop. Below the stream of the a-side and a track from a session they did last month.

Puro Instinct - Stilyagi [ft. Ariel Pink] by youandmeintheecho

Disconcerts - Copper Gone Green / Trouble Keeping

This new Disconcerts single was released as a free download last week. It's their first release since the A. Medic EP from last year. Listen / Download below.

Copper Gone Green by Disconcerts
Trouble Keeping by Disconcerts

CUFFS - Privilege (Demo)

Dowload three demo's from CUFFS here.

Red Sea - In Shape

This beautiful EP was released by Red Sea last week. They remind me a bit of Women with less Sonic Youth noise. The songs are nicely unpredictable and intense. On their Bandcamp page you can download the free track 'Cruel Future' from the EP. Listen to 'In Shape' below.

Weird Problem EP on Bandcamp

Plug - Sexy Coma

This is the best track from Plug's self-titled debut album. It's out now on Upset The Rhythm.

More Plug is here.

Plug - Sexy Coma by youandmeintheecho

Wire - A Flat Tent (From 'Red Barked Tree')

Wire's new album Red Barked Tree is out January 11th. Another track, 'Two Minutes', is here.

A Flat Tent by Popfrenzy

Throwing Muses - Bluff / Blurry

I like this new Throwing Muses demo a lot. The end is great. For more info about their new record and how you can help them, go here: http://throwingmuses.cashmusic.org/ .

mp3

Throwing Muses - Bluff / Blurry by youandmeintheecho

PJ Harvey - Written On The Forehead (From 'Let England Shake')

Ofcourse we were happy with last week's announcement of PJ Harvey's new album Let England Shake, but we want to hear something as well. Below the stream of 'Written On The Forehead' plus the tracklist. It's released February 14th. For live versions of the title track and 'The Last Living Rose' go here.

Written On The Forehead by pjharvey

Tracklist:

1. Let England Shake

2. The Last Living Rose

3. The Glorious Land

4. The Words That Maketh Murder

5. All And Everyone

6. On Battleship Hill

7. England

8. In The Dark Places

8. Bitter Branches

10. Hanging In The Wire

11. Written On The Forehead

12. The Colour Of The Earth

Stephen Malkmus - We Can't Help You

Gil Scott-Heron And Jamie XX - NY Is Killing Me

The Rapture - Time / The Return Of Truth And Beauty In American Popular Music

The Rapture released the Insound Tour Support Series Vol.19 EP in 2001. It includes a great version of 'House Of Jealous Lovers' without the electronics. Pukekos wrote a cool article about The Rapture's early days in New York, go here. The Rapture's perfect first single The Chair That Squeeks is also there, with the Psychadelic Furs cover 'Dumb Waiters' on the flipside.

Two tracks from the EP, 'Time' and 'The Return Of Truth And Beauty In American Popular Music', are streaming below, I never heard them before.

Photo: 'Dog' by Marloes van Doorn from Das Banale Ding.

Time by youandmeintheecho
The Return of Truth and Beauty in American Popular Music by youandmeintheecho

The Walkmen - Good Day Carry On

This is the b-side from the 'Angela Surf City' 7".

The Walkmen - "Good Day Carry On" by Some Kind of Awesome

Twin Shadow - Savannah Howl

Twin Shadow - Savannah Howl by jobology

Twin Shadow - Castles In The Snow

The Victorian English Gentlemens Club - Polish Man / The Woodsman / Make You Not A Man

The VEGC are recording a new album and have just toured with Archie Bronson Outfit. Scroll down for some b-sides from the Love On An Oil Rig singles plus the last single 'A Biting Wind Followed By An Occasional Drift Of Snow (Was No Way To Cure A Hangover)'. It's one of the best singles of the year and it's free, click on the arrow for the mp3. Also a live video of 'Parrot'.

Make You Not A Man by thisisfakediy
Polish Man by thisisfakediy
The Woodsman by thisisfakediy
A Biting Wind Followed By An Occasional Drift Of Snow (Was No Way To Cure A Hangover) by thisisfakediy

Parrot (3-in-a-bed version) from This Is Fake DIY Records on Vimeo.

Atlas Sound - Bedroom Databank Vol. 4

This 4th Bedroom Databank was recorded yesterday, it's not as good as the previous 3. Vol. 4 is more a concept, apparently based on a (fictional?) tape a guy called Tommy recorded in the basement of his parents' house in Winnipeg in 1975. This 'Talent Show Audition Tape, Winnipeg 1975' is the best track, but for some really great Atlas Sound music, check out Vol. 1-3.

Download from Deerhunter's blog.

Atlas Sound - Talent Show Audition Tape, Winnipeg 1975 by youandmeintheecho

Swimsuit - Sunlight / Evaporation

Swimsuit's fantastic 5 track demo tape Life Like is sold out unfortunately.

They make rattling twee guitar pop, a bit sweeter and more contagious than Veronica Falls. The lo fi production also adds some charm to the sound. The download is here and their myspace is here. Below the two most striking tracks 'Sunlight' and 'Evaporation'.

Swimsuit - Sunlight by youandmeintheecho
Swimsuit - Evaporation by youandmeintheecho