Ume, Amazing Baby, Hatcham Social, Starlight Mints

No excuses… just right into a quick post to get some momentum back.

This here is Lauren Larson.

But don’t peg her as the next cute Swedish pop songstress highlighted by djeddieo.com.   Lauren is the lead singer and guitarist for Austin-based Ume, and she brings to mind J Mascis more than Lykke Li.  So if heavy guitar driven riffage is what you like, check out The Conductor, which surpasses any hard rock “hit” on the airwaves today.

I don’t know much about Brooklyn’s Amazing Baby, but a quick listen to their new album (streaming here – albeit one song at a time) promises a varied landscape.  From psych-folk of The Narwhal, to the dancier Deerripper, and more straight-up indie like Smoke Bros.  But Headdress (video below) is their pride with an atmospheric feel that actually has some bite and a real pop catch. 

I feel like I’m going to beat djeddieo to the punch on Hatcham Social.  Slick, throwback indie Brit-pop.  So So Happy Making feels like it could have come out anytime over the last 25 years.  Something about the guitar strumming on this tune reminds me of Will Sergeant on any number of Echo and the Bunnymen songs.

Finally, the Starlight Mints have released a new album.  The first track released, Zoomba, is a summer party kind of song… no wonder I first heard it on a KEXP Music that Matters podcast called ‘Summer Songs’.

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Zee Avi, Cursive, and the podcast’s coming! really!

This podcasting is even harder than it seems! Trying to get up to speed on Audacity (for recording) and Session (to operate the microphone) is a nightmare. Not to mention I hate the sound of my own voice (you will too, trust me!) If you’d like YOUR voice to be included on the podcasts, call the djeddieo.com Seattle office at (206) 426-6947 and leave a nice message. You can make a request, but I’m pretty notorious for never playing them, so that’ll never air. You’re probably better off with “I’m so-and-so and I listen to djeddieo.com in Leavenworth, Kansas” or whatever. Your call.

Here’s a good example from my good friend Peter —hey Peter, whassup??—in Lake Tahoe:

Well, one nice discovery that I’m eager to play for you is Zee Avi.

Zee Avi

Born in Borneo, now based in Kuala Lumpur (though educated in London), you’ll be amazed at how much she sounds like she spent time in the American south (she hasn’t). I find her reminiscant of Zooey Deschanel, which is not a bad thing. Check out her MySpace page or her website, and be sure to hear the new single, “Bitter Heart”….(don’t listen to “First Of The Gang To Die”…that’s the one I’m gonna play and I want it to be a surprise!)

Here’s the video to “Bitter Heart” as a taste:

Another “discovery” has been around a while, just unbeknownst to me! Cursive has been around since 1995 in one form or another, and, according to Alternative Press, they redefined their sound in 2006 (actually, the quote was “Cursive haven’t just redefined their sound—they’ve transcended it.”)

Cursive

It’s this new sound I should have heard by now, as they appeared on Late Show with David Letterman in mid-March just after releasing their current CD, “Mama, I’m Swollen”. Dave seemed to enjoy that CD title, and the performance of “From The Hips” did not disappoint, as this YouTube clip documents (I especially dig the suits; very classy):

For more – and it’s all good – check their MySpace page or their website, or just go and buy “Mama, I’m Swollen” ($11 for the CD, instant download, and a poster of “handwritten” lyrics…such a deal, and legal to boot!)