New Song From Interpol

It already been three long years since former Pitchfork prodigal sons Interpol have released anything together - which is crazy, because it seems like just yesterday that I started ignoring Our Love To Admire. But after a few solo jaunts by certain members, they are in fact back and apparently ready to release a new album in a short while, and have thusly released first single "Lights" to drum up a little hype.

So how is it? Well... it sounds one hell of a lot less processed than anything off their last album did, and it builds anticipation and tension nicely, as a good Interpol song should probably do. However, after the overall weakness of their last album, it will take more than a nostalgic single to win me back over. Not that I don't want them too! Best of luck to you, Interpol.

Interpol - MS|OS

Lights - Interpol

*Update - Just looked at Interpol's new logo. What the fuck, Interpol? When has a needless and tasteless 3D logo ever done anything good for any band ever? Do you not remember how sparse and terrify your old logo was? Do you not see that those aesthic elements helped your music effectively communicate emotion and feeling early on? Dont you remember how pointlessly glossing on high budget yet poorly implemented musical affectations in your last album dragged it down so far?

Neo-Tokyo

Yo! Whats the haps, my peeps? Dude, Starcraft 2... shizzzz.

Anywho, Neo-Tokyo. Welsh. Toured with Phoenix. Banger as fuck. They deserve more words than this but, no can do. Maybe later!

Neo Tokyo - MS

Sleepyhead - Passion Pit (Neo-Tokyo Remix)

Fences - Pheonix (Neo-Tokyo Remix)

Porcelain Raft

2k10, lovers. As the summer quickly approaches, it can be important for one to have a fresh supply of some lush, sunbleached, dreamyassed fuckin shoegaze at his or her disposal. Porcelain Raft, the solo project of London artist Mauro Remiddi, lets it just beam out of his eyeballs directly into your soon-to-be-much-happier chest region. He just released two EPs – Gone Blind and Curve – and you can snatch them from his site for a mere quid. Here's why you might seriously consider doing so:

Porcelain Raft - MS

The Globes

OK, I owe it to my hometown to throw my support behind this band. The Globes are a four-piece group from Spokane who have been living together in a house in Seattle for a few years, and have been getting noticed enough around the city that they have finally reverted back to calling themselves a Spokane band – which is fucking awesome, because I was worried that if (and, I think, when) this band finally makes it, they were going to say they were from Seattle. Boise might have Built to Spill, but as far as Spokane is concerned, the best they've been able to muster music-wise in the past 50 years has been........Bing Crosby. Yeahhh....

But fuck that, now Spokane can rock your face off. The last time I saw this group was at a winery in Spokane, when they still called themselves Four Years Blue. Since that time, their sound has gotten far more polished, they've had real studio time (complete with John Goodmanson, the producer behind several Death Cab albums, amongst other things), and have put out a couple solid EP's, the most recent of which is called Sinter Songs and features four borderline-hypnotic Radiohead-esque (and yes I find that term overused, but whatever) songs, each with a bitchsmack of post rock epicness mixed into their very distinctive eastern Washington-inspired soundscapes. It's a sound that them big city folks can bob their heads to, but also something that truly clicks if it serves as the background music to a trip through the alternately barren and beautiful landscape that is the eastern side of the Cascades. You can tell these guys have been living in Seattle for a while; but you can also tell where these guys are really from, which is a really tricky balancing act to pull off, and which makes me appreciate them as an awesomely genuine group of musicians that I truly hope goes places. The Cheetah salutes you, guys.

The Globes - A Stitch Couldn't Save the World

The Globes - Pretty Birds above our Heads

The Globes - MS

Tim's Track Of The Day

I don't remember how I discovered this, but I'm glad I did. It's "Tunnelvision," by Here We Go Magic, which is the solo project of folk singer-songwriter Luke Temple. It's a great song for doing things; I love songs that feel like they never stop moving forward, as I always imagine driving through one of Seattle's many freeway tunnels but never reaching the end. The video captures that feeling pretty well:

Here We Go Magic - Tunnelvision

Broken Social Scene Bonus EP

Just found out that Broken Social Scene decided to release a bonus digital EP! Its called Lo-Fi For The Dividing Nights, it accompanies all pre-orders of Forgiveness Rock Record, and it has ten tracks! So preorder Forgiveness Rock Record, fool!

Broken Social Scene - MS|OS

New LCD Soundsystem Video - Drunk Girls.

Wow... just... wow.

LCD Soundsystem - MS|OS

Tim's Track Of The Day

Walkabout, by Atlas Sound. Featuring Noah Lennox (Panda Bear of Animal Collective). Get it.

An added bonus is that anyone who knows me personally will understand why this is my theme song for the time being. Enjoy!

Atlas Sound - Walkabout (w/Noah Lennox)

Record Store Day Crystal Castles Release

Today is record store day, and bands are dropping special albums all over the country. Crystal Castles got into the spirit of things by releasing Doe Deer, and we here at the cheetah managed to stumble over a few decent quality radio rips of the single itself and B-Side Celestica.

Celestia is an airy, almost dreamy cut from Crystal Castles, and in sharp contrast to Doe Deer, which is a pounding and aggressive track, maybe one of the most aggressive things I've heard from the band.

The thing which is immediately noticeable about both tracks it seems that they rely significantly less on the tinny, 8-bit aesthetic that was so defining about their first album - although that may be a result of the rips.

Anyways, these tracks do have me pumped to see what the band can do with a second album, and makes me absolutely positive that I will need to see them as soon as possible.

Crystal Castles - MS|OS

Crystal Castles - Doe Deer

Crystal Castles - Celestica

Little Dragon

Surprise, surprise, Tim has yet another band to add to his amazingly long list of bands that he has discovered within a week of being able to see them. Little Dragon played Seattle earlier this week, but that didn't stop me from finding out about them through a completely different avenue just days later (this happens to me...allthefuckingtime). Oh well, the Cheetah still deserves to be fed, even if I let it get a little hungry first.

Little Dragon is a synthpop group from Sweden, headed up by a Japanese-Swedish chick singer (I know, it's baller) named Yukimi Nagano. I personally found out about them because they are featured on my favorite track "Empire Ants" from the recent Gorillaz album Plastic Beach. They've released two albums, most recently last year's Machine Dreams. It's hard to put a finger on the sound, because it's super Swedish and completely un-Swedish at the same time, in large part because of Yukimi's distinctive voice. She sounds like a much raspier (and less annoying, at least for me) Karin Dreijer Andersson, and as a result you get some swinging Swede-y pop ballads, but with a lot of soul thrown in. There's a lot to be had from their sound, as the electronic thuds that populate the background of most of the songs serve more as a simple common denominator than anything else that could be more driving. It feels like good music for being driven through the downtown of an empty city at 3 in the morning...and it's always good to have that kind of music to turn to. Check it out!

Little Dragon - OS|MS

Amon Tobin + Zombies

One of the most badass zombie short films ever...with music by Amon Tobin. MUNCH!

Fuck Buttons Tour Dates!

Fuck Buttons just released their tour dates!!! And they'll be in Seattle on May 16th @ Chop Suey!!! Check out the full list. I looooove Fuck Buttons, and I will hella be all up in this show's shit. Take it away, Flight Of The Feathered Serpent:

New Band of Horses Song - Laredo

Band of Horses were nice enough to send out another new track named "Laredo."A little more energetic than "Compliments" but with a similar optimistic outlook as that track. I like it! Its still that same sort of folksy Northwest indie rock.

Band of Horses - MS|OS

THE ELECTRO WARS ARE COMING!!!

As presaged by the Alpha and the Omega - HIPSTER RUNOFF - the electro wars are finally upon us.

Steel yourselves electro soldiers! Get out your neon green headbands and bright pink AK-47s!

The Electro Wars Final Trailer from Stephen Alex Vasquez on Vimeo.

The Electro Wars

Crystal Castles Gets Title/Album Cover

This is the cover art for Crystal Castles' new album. It will be called Crystal Castles. It will come out on June 7th. I am pumped.

This is the track list -

Crystal Castles

01 Fainting Spells

02 Celestica

03 Doe Deer

04 Baptism

05 Year of Silence

06 Empathy

07 Suffocation

08 Violent Dreams

09 Vietnam

10 Birds

11 Pap Smear

12 Not in Love

13 Intimate

14 I Am Made of Chalk

Crystal Castles - MS|OS

Crystal Castles - Trash Hologram (Zelenka Remix)

Crystal Castles - Trash Hologram (Zelenka Dark Dub)

Two New LCD Soundsystem Songs!

We All Really Want Someone To Shout For just posted two brand new songs from LCD Soundsystem, supposedly off their upcoming album This Is Happening! While their first single, "Drunk Girls" was a bit confusing, with its early, rough vibe, these songs reflect more of the polished and glorious feel of Sound of Silver, as well as the lyrical earnestness that was so prevalent on that album. The first is a somewhat low quality cut of "I Can Change," a groovy, smooth track that highlights the pleasant timbre that James Murphy's voice has developed and reminds me a bit of "Someone Great," which is awesome, because that song is incredible.

The second is called "Dance Yourself Clean," and is a eight minute epic that is somewhat unlike anything that LCD Soundsystem has ever done. Its definitely slow burning, with a steady rhythm that carries the song to the conclusion. Check it out!

LCD Soundsystem - MS|OS

LCD Soundsystem - Dance Yourself Clean

LCD Soundsystem - I Can Change

*Update - It looks like the album may have been leaked...

The Hold Steady - Barely Breathing

Who has two thumbs and has been listening to The Hold Steady's albums on repeat in anticipation for Heaven is Whenever? This guy. Anyways, they've released another track, entitled barely breathing. It has a clarinet solo, which is new for The Hold Steady.

The Hold Steady - MS|OS

The Hold Steady - Barely Breathing
(via stereogum)

Crystal Castles

Crystal Castles is releasing a new album this year - their first since their self titled EP came out in 2008. For the uninitiated, Crystal Castles is an expermental electronic noise act with Ethan Kath bringing the unassuming yet driving beats and Alice Glass providing the insane vocals and stage presense. I saw them open for Metric back in 2007 and an extremely drunk Alice Glass proceeded to destroy the Showbox and make Crystal Castles the only act Ive ever seen the Showbox stop halfway when she jumped on top of Metric's drum kit.

On top of all that, I was blown away by their music - once described as "8-bit terror," it is absolutely one of the most infectious electronic sounds Ive ever heard - I actually spent a good part of winter 2007 obsessed with their music, and a huge part of summer 2009 listening to "Black Panther" on repeat endlessly.

To prep their album, on April 17th the band will release what is being billed as their comback single "Doe Deer," an "abrubtly to-the-point one minute and thirty seven riot of brutally modernist, white noise punk power," according to steroboard.

Awesome.

Until then enjoy this great remix of my fav, "Black Panter", and this excellent recently upped mastered version of Midnight Consipiracy's remix of Crystal Castle's original breakout track, Crimewave. Which, course, was a remix of HEALTH's Crimewave. A remix of a remix of a heavily sampled track. I love it.

Crystal Castles - Crimewave (Midnight Consipracy Remix) Offical HARD Tour Release

Crystal Castles - MS|OS

Crystal Castles - Crimewave (Midnight Consipracy Remix)

Crystal Castles - Black Panther (Story of Issac Remix)

Stars - Fixed

Stars are back! And despite my bumpy history with [mostly just the lead singer of] this band, I couldn't be more happy. Set Yourself On Fire was a masterpiece among masterpieces and, though it took me a while to warm up to it, In Our Bedroom After The War made it in my top ten for 2K7.

So, I couldn't be more thrilled to offer you the first single off of the band's fifth album The Five Ghosts, upcoming on June 22nd. If the single here sounds a lot closer to Set Yourself On Fire, going back to poppy bouncing synth lines and general indie bopness - highlighted, of course, by the absolutely stunning voice of Amy Millan. Do enjoy the song, check the tracklist, see the tour dates, and go to a show! If you get lucky the lead singer will be coherent enough to not be an asshole to you!!

AND! A bonus Amy Millan cover of Death Cab's 'I Will Follow You Into the Dark' off of her solo album Masters of the Burial, out now!

The Five Ghosts:

01. “Dead Hearts”
02. “Wasted Daylight”
03. “I Died So I Could Haunt You”
04. “Fixed”
05. “We Don’t Want Your Body”
06. “He Dreams He’s Awake”
07. “Never Been Good With Change”
08. “The Passenger”
09. “The Last Song Ever Written”
10. “How Much More”
11. “Winter Bones”

06/01 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
06/03 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church
06/04 – Brooklyn, NY @ Music hall of Williamsburg
06/05 – New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge
06/06 – Houston, TX @ Free Press Summerfest
06/08 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom
06/09 – Chicago, IL @ Lincoln Hall
06/15 – Seattle, WA @ The Triple Door
06/16 – Seattle, WA @ The Triple Door
06/17 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
06/19 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
06/20 – San Francisco, CA @ The Independent
06/22 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Troubadour
06/23 – Los Angles, CA @ The Troubadour

Stars (OS) | (MS) | (W) - Fixed (MP3)

Amy Millan (OS) | (MS) | (W) - I Will Follow You Into the Dark (MP3)

They Return.

Godspeed You! Black Emperor is back. I would write more, but that speaks for itself. Holy fucking shit.

Artist Profile - The Aston Shuffle

The Aston Shuffle is an excellent house outfit from Canberra, Australia, representing some of the finest remaining warriors of the Electro Wars of 2k8. Composed of DJs Mike Freeman and Vance Musgrove, they play a style of house music and generate remixes that are at the same thoughtful, progressive and banger, a bastion of taste amid the thousand and one Timmy Trombonerz that dot the Australian electronic soundscape.

I bring them up today because they recently dropped a new remix of Kissy Sellout's "Garden Friends" which is pretty much amazing. Smooth and forceful, slick yet devestating, its one of their best tracks to date.

Kissy Sellout - Garden Friends (Aston Shuffle Remix) by TheAstonShuffle

Kissy Sellout - Garden Friends (The Aston Shuffle Remix)

But in honor of their inaugural appearance on Cheetah Love, I figured I might as well post some of their past excellence, highlighting their original track "I Wanna See You," which may be the least banger of the bunch but exhibits the strength of their unedited material, and The Bloody Beetroots remix of "Stomp Your Shoes (ft. Tommy Sunshine)," which may be the most banger of the bunch, and shows what happens when Italians get their hands on Australian product. And finally, the classic "For Everyone," because it's fucking amazing.

The Aston Shuffle - MS|OS

The Aston Shuffle - For Everyone

The Aston Shuffle - I Wanna See You

The Aston Shuffle - I Wanna See You (DCUP Remix)

The Aston Shuffle - Stomp Yo Shoes (ft. Tommy Sunshine) (Bloody Beetroots Remix)

The Aston Shuffle - Do You Want More (Ft. Danimal Kingdon (The Aston Shuffle)

N.A.S.A - Gifted (The Aston Shuffle Remix)

Claude Von Stroke - The Whistler (The Aston Shuffle Remix)

Fang Island

I know Im pretty late on this one - but I've definitely fallen head over heels for Fang Island. These Brooklyn kids play a sort of of noise-math rock in the vein of Hella, with a chaotic innocence that recalls the Mae She. Its infectious, its loud, its awesome. The opening trio of songs hits hard, with "Daisy" and "Life Coach" ending up as some of the album highlights when all is said and done. I honestly dont think I've listened to something that felt this honest and strangely fun since I first heard Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. They just released their first EP, Fang Island, and its definately worth a listen, and probably worth a purchase as well.

Check out this video, if you dont believe me - it works as sort of a mission statement for the band and conjurs up exactly the sort of energy that defines the band. Furthermore, it lines up with their stated objective, as guitarist Jason Bartell puts it, to "Make music for people who like music." And who likes music more than a classroom full of kindergardeners?

Fang Island - OS|MS

Fang Island - Diasy

Fang Island - Life Coach

Kele Okereke

Bloc Party's reclusive and enigmatic frontman Kele Okereke is releasing a solo album. This is not altogether unexpected - the band has been talking about going their own seperate ways, musically, and Kele has been doing voicework for various artists (such as the Chemical Brothers and Tiesto), as well as the way Bloc Party's music has been adapting to his own changing influences. The album is set to come out on June 21st, is called The Boxer, and the first single is going to be called "Tenderoni," and is being produced by Spank Rock.

Huh.

Well, I'll wait till anything until I pass judgement.

Kele - MS|OS

Tiesto - It's Not The Things You Say (ft. Kele Okereke) (Filthy White Dukes Remix)

The Hold Steady Watch 2k10 - New Track

Another beuatiful, energetic single from The Hold Steady! Its not the more laid back stuff that they advertised as being on the record, but its The Hold Steady and its solid!

The Hold Steady - MS|OS

The Hold Steady - "The Weekenders"

UPDATE: New track 'Barely Breathing' over at Stereogum!

Band of Horses New Music Video

Band of Horses released their first song off their upcoming album Infinite Arms in music video form. The song is called "Compliments" and is an upbeat, anthemic jaunt for the Northwest indie rockers. A bit of a departure from the much darker Cease to Begin, but a nice song nevertheless.

Band of Horses - MS|OS

The New Pornographers - Together

Our power pop neighbors from Vancouver, The New Pornographers, have a new album coming out, and in anticipation of that, I decided to up the two tracks that have been leaked from it. The first is called "Your Hands (Together)" is pretty fantastic, and reminds me of exactly why I feel in love with the New Pornographers back during their Mass Romantic time period. Epic, jangly, enthusiastic and heartfelt, it reminds me of my most favorite New Pornographers song "From Blown Speakers."

The other song is called "Crash Years," and reminds me of exactly why I got bored with The New Pornograpers. I mean, its not necessarily terrible, but it seems undercooked and bland. Its somewhat catchy, but it goes basically nowhere and I have a hard time focusing on it. Perhaps a few more listens will yield a better attitude towards it.

Anyways, Together is out on May 4th. Lets see what you can do, New Pornographers!

The New Pornographers - MS|OS

The New Pornographers - "Your Hands (Together)"

The New Pornographers - "Crash Years"

Florrie

Just heard this track by Florrie - supposedly the new face of indie pop stardom. Ill be honest, I was mostly attracted to the Fred Falke remix - but this is pretty solid. Check it out!

Florrie - MS|OS

Florrie - Panic Attack (Fred Falke Remix)