Young Buffalo - Young Von Prettylips EP (2011)

Young Buffalo popped up on my radar when I saw that they were opening for The Vaccines and Tennis on tour and specifically at MusicfestNW. They also keep with this week's emergent theme of writing about bands who have siblings in other rad bands (Guards/Cults); Young Buffalo’s Jim Barrett’s brother plays garage rock with Bass Drum of Death. Given their touring partners, no one should be surprised that Young Buffalo play catchy indie pop. In particular, their youthful energy and bountiful hooks remind me of the Givers and Little Ones. “Speak EZ” soars with vocal harmonies over a thumping drum beat, while guitars ring brightly. The alternating lines on “Full Metal Whacket” feed off each other, creating a boisterous call and response. Overall, it fun EP.

Although not on the EP, if you visit their webpage you can pick up their excellent cover of the Broken Social Scene’s “Anthems For A 17-Year-Old Girl” (mp3).


Young Buffalo - Catapilah from NAM on Vimeo.

MusicfestNW Begins!

Man, there are a lot of great bands playing in Portland in the next few days. If I wasn't a brand new dad I'd be straining my stamina standing in line and dancing in front of just about every stage, but now I have to pace myself. Although I already have my Thursday, Friday, and Saturday of MusicfestNW planned, there are plenty of other options, including lots of great local bands. Sure, sure, The National are playing on Sunday, but it's during the day and outside and I've never been a fan of either.

Here is a quick list of some of the great bands I am hoping come back on tour soon (or if they are local, just play another show soon): Mark Olson, Red Fang, Black Lips, Boy Eats Drum Machine, Shaky Hands, Magic Kids, Okkervil River, New York Rifles, The Tallest Man On Earth, The Builders & The Butchers, Blue Giant, The Upsidedown, The Mynabirds, BOAT, Titus Andronicus, Suckers, The Dodos, Monarques, Helio Sequence, and The Walkmen.

See you on the other side.

Noise Pop Festival Preview

One major problem I have with the classic one or two day festival format is that you can only see one act at a time and end up missing many of the "up-and-comers" as they are often scheduled head-to-head with the so-called "main events." Chaos ensues and disappointment abounds, as many of you who have attended Outside Lands have likely experienced, when you realize the awesomeness you will (or have already) missed. Noise Pop, on the other hand, breaks from this mob inspired format and offers seven hot and sweaty nights of small, medium and large venue shows where the notable headliners are paired with less-widely-knowners and can be seen in the friendly confines of your favorite San Francisco rendezvous. It is inevitable that some of your favorites will be playing at the same time, but at least you won't be stuck in the porta-poddy lines whilst three of your favorites play simultaneously on far away stages. The 2010 edition is already shaping up to be one for the ages with The Magnetic Fields, Mark Kozelek of Sun Kil Moon and Red House Painters, East Bay's own Rogue Wave, West Bay's own The Dodos (with Magik*Magik Orchestra in a collaborative performance), Bradford Cox of Deerhunter solo project Atlas Sound, the psychedelic Swedish rockers The Soundtrack of Our Lives, hailing from Scotland (compare to Frightened Rabbit) We Were Promised Jetpacks, Wallpaper, Scissors For Lefty, The Limousines, !!!, Maus Haus, Mirah, Nurses, The Hot Toddies, Memory Tapes, and Foreign Born (in no particular order) have all made early commitments to rock your socks off. (Just to name a few.)

More acts will be announced at later dates. The event also features a happy hour at Bender's every night of the festival and The Industry Noise Music "Conference" on Saturday, February 27th.

For more information on each artist, please follow the links. Go here for the full schedule.

The Dodos - Visiter (2008)

I just saw these guys last night and they're awesome. On the album, their indie folk falls somewhere between Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, the Animal Collective, and Iron & Wine's later releases. While the songs are catchy, it's the interplay between the drum and rhythm guitar that makes their music stand out. They toy with experimentation, but never loose the song. Live, they ramp up intensity, strumming faster, pounding harder, and just rock out. Check out "Fools", "Winter" and "Walking" for starters.