Hyped on: My Old Kentucky Blog; Ear Farm; Parasites & Sycophants
Official site
MySpace
Who: Big Sleep has been kicking around the Brooklyn music scene for some time, having opened for well-established (and beer chugging) borough acts the Hold Steady and Les Savy Fav. There’s reason this trio hasn’t been, ahem, slept on (OK, had to get that joke out of the way). Their shoegazy, mostly instrumental post-rock is tailor-made for the anti-pop audience—and played loud and proud in combustible live sets.
What: Vocals don’t kick in until the fourth track, an intense jam called “Bad Blood.” Bassist and sometime vocalist Sonya Balchandani keeps pace with the washy guitar work of Danny Barria, who is the obvious linchpin in the band. Solo guitar instrumental “Undying Love” is probably a mushy note to his Fender Strat, while “Organs” is another mono-instrument tug and rub. “Chorus Of Guitars” samples the opening drum loop from TV on the Radio’s “I Was a Lover” before breaking into a piano-driven ballad. Homage? Quite possibly. Too soon? Quite possibly.
Made for: Fans of influential late-‘80s shoegaze band Ride (or their contemporaries Sonic Youth and My Bloody Valentine). Those who by ear plugs by the gross.
X-Factor: “The Big Sleep” is a 1939 detective novel by Raymond Chandler, later made into a film-noir adaptation starring Humphrey Bogart as a sleuth hired to investigate the debts of an untamed daughter linked to gambling and pornography. – MR
Jack Peñate, "Matinee" (XL Recordings)
Hyped on: The Modern Age; Oh My Rockness; Look at me, I made a blog
Official site
MySpace
Who: Peñate (pronounced Pen-YAH-tay), a 23-year-old Londoner with a goofy pompadour and a Cockney drawl, cracked the U.K. top ten last year with “Matinee,” his debut. His first Stateside show in New York last month drew rave reviews.
What: With an earnest vocal delivery that’s equal parts Billy Bragg and Dexy's Midnight Runners, and a sound that updates the classic jangle-pop of the Smiths and Housemartins for the Franz Ferdinand set, Peñate could be mistaken for an ‘80s revivalist if his style didn’t ooze so much youthful exuberance. Ska-inflected rave-ups like “Spit at Stars” and “Second, Minute or Hour” are his debut’s obvious highlights, but he’s pretty darned good at blue-eyed soul come-ons like “My Yvonne,” too.
Made for: Fans of Brit-pop looking for something a little frothier than the Kooks and the Fratellis. Anyone who thought “Sexuality” was Billy Bragg’s best song. Latter-day mods and not-so-rude boys. Moderate skanking and polite pogoing (Peñate famously scolded fans at a London show last year for trying to start a mosh pit).
X-Factor: When recently asked to record a cover for BBC Radio’s Live Lounge series, Peñate shrewdly chose to do Feist’s “1234,” giving the tune a sunny burst of his trademark, bouncy strumming. – AH
F---ed Up, "Hidden World" (Jade Tree)
Hyped on: Missing Toof; Quarterlifeparty; Tonight we'll get our kicks!
Official site
Who: A Toronto hardcore band that keeps its identity well-guarded: not only does the band eschew sites like MySpace (their official Web page is a bare-bones blog, mainly used to post tour dates), it’s also released records (such as “Looking for Gold”) that lack liner notes, song titles and credits. Despite that, FU has gained a cult following, thanks to frequent touring with up-and-comers Gallows and an oddly fawning New York Times profile that managed to never once mention the group’s provocative name.
What: A typical F’ed Up song is equal parts old-school oi/hardcore (Black Flag is a frequent, and not incorrect, comparison) and experimental jam, meaning it may include spoken word intros, three-minute drum breaks, or, in the case of the B-side to their recent Christmas single “David Christmas,” a bevy of A-level guest vocalists (think Jello Biafra, LCD Soundsystem and…Nelly Furtado). And, thanks to shirtless, often bloodied vocalist Pink Eyes, their live show is one you may not forget. Or live through: the singer admitted to the Star newspaper in Toronto his original goal in the band was to “put on the most violent show possible.”
Made for: Anarchists. People who think punk died around 1983. People who will buy anything associated with Justice (see below).
X-Factor: Yes, they do a Justice cover. And it’s goooood.
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