X-Wife

X-Wife are from Portugal. If Thom Yorke decided to have a little fun and join Pulp to play dance-y new wave tunes; this is what they would sound like. That muted picked riff on “Ping-Pong” is catchy stuff. They play three great NYC dates before heading down to Texas for SXSW. I will definitely be checking them out.

X-Wife (myspace) – Ping Pong (via BadmintonStamps)
X-Wife – When The Lights Turn Off

Mar 9th Ruff Club @ Annex New York, NY
Mar 10th 2007 FIXED meets Modular @ Studio B w/ Simian Mobile Disco Brooklyn, NY
Mar 11th 2007 Club Midway w/Metronomy, The Flesh New York, NY
Mar 14th 2007 SXSW, Friends (208 E 6th Street) Austin, TX

Indian Jewelry | Invasive Exotics

I have no clue how I missed Indian Jewelry last year. After hearing great things about their legendary live shows and finally getting around to listening to Invasive Exotics, I’m kicking myself for missing them back in December. For those of you heading out to SXSW this year, do your ears a big favor and be sure to catch Indian Jewelry. They’re playing two shows on March 16th at Victory Grill (3:00pm) and Blender Balcony at the Ritz (11:45pm). If you already have something scheduled at one of those times, fuck it, cross it out on your little itinerary and write in “heart shaking hallucinogenic experimental techno shit recommended by CrackersUnited.com” and don’t forget to go.

The Houston, TX three-piece consisting of Tex Kerschen, Erika Thrasher, and Rodney Rodriguez has been described as a “dream marriage between Suicide and early Butthole Surfers, monotonous rhythm married to guitar pyrotechnics, vocal histrionics, and squealing synth stabs, all bathed in the blinding flash of the strobe light.” Like Invasive Exotics, their live shows also feature an array guest musicians. Check out the stomping leadoff track, “Lesser Snake” and “Come Closer” from Invasive Exotics below and pick up the album at Monitor Records.

Indian Jewelry  ”Lesser Snake” (via Funtime OK)
Indian Jewelry  ”Come Closer”

Mystery Twin

I finally got around to watching Babel over the weekend and the thing that impressed me the most about the film was its soundtrack. The music fit the tension, mood, and imagery throughout the movie perfectly. There was a scene in the Japan segment of the film where Cheiko (Rinko Kikuchi), a teenage “deaf mute,” and her friends meet up with some guys in a playground and drink some whiskey and take some drugs. Already isolated from the world due to her handicap, Cheiko draws deeper into isolation following her mother’s suicide and teen angst further compounds her frustrations. In this scene, composer Ryuichi Sakamoto’s “Only Love Can Conquer Hate,” kicks in as Cheiko finally feels acceptance and joy and for a minute we feel relief. Sakamoto’s ambient wash of atmospheric loops plays over the blissful slow motion setting of the friends splashing in fountains and riding on swings.

What followed was one of the most heartbreaking parts of the movie as the group leaves the playground and heads out to a club while Sakamoto’s track gives way to Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September” which everyone goes crazy for, except for Cheiko, who has sort of a dumfounded look on her face. The club’s imagery and sound were used to express Cheiko’s feelings and for a second I forgot she was deaf, until the camera angle changed to her perspective and the music cut out – nothing but silence and light. “September” lead into the thick heavy basslines of Fatboy Slim’s “September/The Joker” and further sexual frustration ensued as her friend started making out with the guy she was smitten with. Silence followed the Fatboy Slim track as the devastated Cheiko left the club and made her way down the bustling Tokyo streets, walking past crowded intersections and live bands, hearing nothing.

I mentioned this scene for a couple reasons, one being that it was utterly powerful and moving and the second being that it was fresh in my mind and reminded of the music of the Osaka 8-bit duo, Mystery Twin. Mystery Twin is the boyfriend/girlfriend couple of Cailan Burns and Yoshie who create dreamy downtempo electronic pop. Like Sakamoto’s “Only Love Can Conquer Hate,” Mystery Twin balances delicate beauty with peaceful atmospheric loops, textures, and glitches taking the listener into that “am I awake or dreaming state.” Their songs are powerful and moving, yet peaceful, soothing. You could almost pluck one of the tracks straight from their MySpace page, drop it in the playground scene and the movie would’ve never skipped a beat.

The pair hasn’t disclosed too much information about themselves, but it is known that Burns is also in the electronic band Pretty Boy Crossover and illustrates much of the band’s artwork. Head over to the duo’s MySpace page for some “rainy day sunshine poptronica” and check out “Underneath Your Feet” below. Hopefully the band will be putting out an EP or album sometime soon, or better yet, some soundtrack work.

Mystery Twin  ”Underneath Your Feet”

The Shackeltons | Sign to Loveless Records/Prep Album

Great news from FRICTION alums, The Shackeltons, as they recently signed to Seattle’s Loveless Records (Tom Brosseau, Voyager One). They were the first band the label signed in nearly two years. The band’s road to Loveless began when label partner/KEXP “Morning Show” host John Richards saw the band live for the first time during CMJ. “After seeing The Shackeltons live I realized why I started a record label…when you see and hear a band this full of energy and passion you can’t help but be moved.”

The Chambersburg, PA five-piece is heading out to Los Angeles next month to record a full-length with Sam Jones, who is best known for his Wilco documentary, “I Am Trying To Break Your Heart.” The Shackeltons debut on Loveless will be released in the late summer or early fall of this year.

The Shackeltons  ”Your Movement”
The Shackeltons on MySpace

pic of the week – eye on art

the art world’s focus will be on new york’s armory show this weekend where nearly 150 international galleries will be showcasing some of their most exceptional works of contemporary art. as much as i admire art, i won’t be attending simply because (a) my limited savings couldn’t get me more than this item (fragments from two broken budweiser bottles) and (b) i feel as if i could have made that crap myself… well, at least the artist didn’t use good beer.

Dan Deacon | Spiderman of the Rings

I’m not really in a writing mood today, but I thought I’d share this this track I’ve really been digging. XLR8R did a super nice piece on the burgeoning Baltimore music scene in their March issue highlighting acts like Ecstatic Sunshine and Dan Deacon. I only heard a couple of tracks off Deacon’s forthcoming record, Spiderman of the Rings (due out on Carpark on May 8th), but what I heard sounds incredibly good.

Deacon seems like a bit of a character and his live shows look ridiculously fun. He’s touring from now until the end of March and will be making a stop in Austin for SXSW.

Ok, that’s a lot more than I really wanted to write, check out Deacon’s MySpace page for full tour dates and mark your calendars for May 8th, this one’s gonna be good!

Dan Deacon  ”The Crystal Cat” (via Pitchfork)

crackerCAM-nicole atkins and the sea, mercury lounge

crackerCAM was on location at mercury lounge last night to catch nicole atkins and the sea. nicole atkins, the talented singer-songwriter who headlined our first friction show, was performing songs from her latest EP, bleeding diamonds. the crowds enthusiasm and anticipation over her performance heightened as nicole atkins took the stage. this of course was unsurprising to those familiar with her singing, which secured her status among the top 10 artists to watch in rolling stone. her delicate voice and melancholy lyrics were nicely framed within the ethereal chords in bleeding diamonds. equally mesmerizing was her haunting croon and pensive lyrics in neptune city, a personal favorite. i’m glad the evening’s drizzle didn’t stave off the masses because nicole atkins’ talent is certainly one to be enjoyed by all.

neptune city (in a different city version) (via indoor fireworks)