My Goodness

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

My Goodness is a Seattle-based blues/garage rock band that consists of Joel Schneider (guitar and vocals) and Andy Lum (drums).

Fractures

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

It took me a little while, but I finally found out who's behind the name Fractures. I assumed it was a band, but it turned out to be one man, singer and multi-instrumentalist Mark Zito from Melbourne, Australia. 

I  immediately fell in love with his music after listening to the songs "Ember" and "It's Alright", in which his voice and style can be compared to Justin Vernon's.

Rocky Wood

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Rocky Wood is a alternative-folk band from Switzerland formed in 2012. Each member of the trio - consisting of Fabio Besomi, Romina Kalsi and Roberto Pianca - plays several instruments.

Check out their debut album "Shimmer" on Bandcamp.

Collape Under The Empire

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Collapse Under The Empire is an instrumental post-rock band from Germany, consisting of Chris Burda and Martin Grimm.

… It’s a mature piece of cinematic post-rock sound… – Q Magazine -

… Crafting electronic post-rock with a flair for the truly cinematic.  - Rocksound -

… Acccomplished, virtuoso and engaging. - Clash Magazine -

If you like bands like Mogwai, God is an Astronaut or Explosions in the Sky you're definitely gonna enjoy this duo.

OST - The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz

Check out the original soundtrack from Brian Knappenberger's film "The Internet's Own Boy: The Story of Aaron Swartz", scored by John Dragonetti and available for free on Noisetrade.

John Murphy - Anonymous Rejected Filmscore

Liverpool born John Murphy began scoring movies at the age of 25. You may know his music from movies like 28 Days Later, Sunshine, Miami Vice, Kick-Ass, Snatch or Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.

In my opinion he is one of the most talented composer out there. So this new album titled ANONYMOUS REJECTED FILMSCORE is an absolute delight for every fan of his music. 

In his head it became the "lost score", the score without a film. We will probably never know for which movie this score was created, but honestly I don't care, I'm just happy it got out and listening to it I will create my own movie in my mind.

Here is the album trailer - just close your eyes and let your imagination run free!

Glaston

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Glaston is an experimental post-rock band from Switzerland. Their first single "Setting Out" was released a few days ago and features guest musicians Solme Hong on cello and KhinHong Yip on violin.

The first single sounds really promising and can be downloaded for free on glaston.bandcamp.com.

Stay tuned for the upcoming EP "Sailing Stormy Waters"!

#1 Dads

Sorry guys, it has been a while, I've been really busy, among other things looking for good music to share with you... and I found some!

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

#1 Dads is the side project of Tom Iansek, frontman for the Melbourne duo Big Scary. He has collaborated with some interesting artists (like Ainslie Wills, Tom Snowdon and Airling) on his second album ABOUT FACE, a very chill and laid-back album.

One song that in my opinion really sticks out is RETURN TO.

Just close your eyes and enjoy this beautiful heart-melting piano melody...

Samaris

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Iceland offers not only beautiful landscapes but also a vibrant and creative music scene that brought us some great artists like Björk, Sigur Ros, Of Monsters and Men, Emiliana Torrini, Ólafur Arnalds and Múm... just to name a few.

The latest band I discovered and absolutely fell in love with is Samaris, an electronic music trio formed in 2011 that consists of Áslaug Rún Magnúsdóttir (clarinet), Þórður Kári Steinþórsson (electronics) and Jófríður Ákadóttir (vocals).

How I would describe their music in one word? CAPTIVATING!

Dorothy

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Dorothy is a band from Los Angeles composed of vocalist Dorothy Martin, drummer Zac Morris, guitarist Mark Jackson and bassist Eliot Lorango.

A very refreshing band who delivers some raw rock and I'm loving it!

Saint Raymond

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

This one is for your summer list: british musician Saint Raymond aka Callum Burrows.

He is preparing the release of his debut full length album and you can already listen to the catchy first single "I Want You" here:

Bigfoot Wallace

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Bigfoot Wallace is the stage name of Jon Hubbell from Phoenix Arizona.

"It's as if we fell down the rabbit hole and Hubbell is introducing us to a whole new light of music." - The Spec

Check out is latest EP "Cup and Crown", available for free on Noisetrade.

Eric & Magill

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Ryan Weber and Eric Osterman, two musicians and long time friends, have developed a collaborative relationship from separate corners of the world and what came out is this project Eric & Magill.

Check them out on Bandcamp, where you can download their song "All Those I Know" for free!

Douglas Dare

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

London-based singer-songwriter Douglas Dare released his first EP "Seven Hours" in September 2013.

After touring through Europe with Olafur Arnalds, he began recording his debut album "Whelm" which came out this year. 

A very personal and poetic record you shouldn't miss...

GEMS

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

GEMS is a pop-synth duo (Clifford John Usher and Lindsay Pitts) formed in 2012 in Washington D.C.

Their new song "Scars" has just been added a few days ago and has already over 90'000 views... sounds promising!

Emmy Curl

If you don't know her yet, check her out!

Emmy Curl (born as Catarina Miranda) is a singer and songwriter from Portugal.

I actually first discovered her a few years ago. I had a lot of time to listen to music since I was in the hospital and her dreamy music transported me to another place and really helped me through the long nights. 

Andrew Bird, Little Dragon, Zero 7, José Gonzalez and Jorge Palma are among the artists Emmy Curl likes to listen to and whose influence often shows in her songs.

She has already released a few EP's on Bandcamp, but her first official album is about to come out this year. For this to happen, she started a project on Musicraiser.com. If you like her music and want to help realizing this project you can contribute here:

http://www.musicraiser.com/projects/2318-my-brand-new-album

Such a beautiful voice has to be heard, so spread the word!

Sylvan Esso

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Sylvan Esso is a side project of vocalist Amelia Meath from Mountain Man and Nick Sanborn, who has made electronic music as Made of Oak, but also has his roots in folk as a member of Megafaun. 

Together, this duo creates a fusion of quirky folk and electro-pop. Check out their self-titled debut available now on iTunes.

Woman's Hour

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Woman's Hour is a band formed in 2011 from London, consisting of siblings Fiona Jane (vocals) and William (guitar) along with Nick (bass) and Josh (keyboards). The quartet's debut album "Conversations" will be out on July 15th.

Sean O'Neill

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Another great talent is rising from Australia, singer-songwriter Sean O'Neill from Perth (now based in London). He has already released a solo EP back Down Under titled "Moving In Time". You can definitely hear his influences like Bon Iver and Sufjan Stevens.

With this beautiful and compelling song "Vienna" he absolutely got my attention and I feel he has a promising future...

Cold Specks

If you don't know her yet, check her out!

I first heard her on an episode of "Sons of Anarchy", the song was called "Lay Me Down", a very soft but yet powerful song with great lyrics and a captivating voice.

Cold Specks aka Al Spx is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She released her debut album "I Predict a Graceful Expulsion" in 2012, appeared on two tracks of Moby's 2013 album "Innocents"and this year on Swans' track "Bring the Sun".

Her new album "Neuroplasticity" will be released on August. Here is a first track called "Absisto", as she says, it's one of the more unusual songs on the record...

Sontag Shogun

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Sontag Shogun is Ian Temple, Jesse Perlstein and Jeremy Young. The trio beautifully mixes piano/keyboard melodies with electronic sounds.

cln

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

So this one is for fans of soft electronic beats. Callan Alexander aka cln is from Australia and he is only 18 years old. "Better Than" is the latest single from this young producer and it's also introducing his forthcoming EP "Sideways". 

Like him on Facebook and you will get the single for free!

Half Moon Run

I'm a little ashamed... they have like over 90'000 likes on Facebook and millions of views on Youtube, but I didn't know them until The Lumineers posted a video of them!

So Half Moon Run is a trio based in Canada. Their sound is a mix of indie, pop and folk with Devon Portielje as lead singer who's beautifully backed up by Connor Molander and Dylan Phillips.

If I wasn't a fan, I am now!

Siren

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Siren are Kat Ostenberg and Skyler Stonestreet, two girls based in Los Angeles. Check out their first song "I Think I Like You" - pretty catchy!

Rhodes

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Rhodes is David Rhodes from Herfordshire. The young english singer-songwriter has just released his new EP "Morning". It's his second EP following "Raise Your Love", and contains 4 original tracks produced by Ian Grimble (Daughter) and Tim Bran/Roy Kerr (London Grammar).

Still Parade

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Well, it is really hard to find any information on Still Parade. All I know is that they are a band from Berlin and they make beautiful "Dream Folk" music.

They have just released their first EP called "Fields" that includes this mesmerizing song "Actors". Enjoy!

  

Black Pistol Fire

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Black Pistol Fire is a drum-n-guitar blues-rock duo from Canada. Kevin McKeown (guitar/lead vocals) and Eric Owen (drums) have been friends since kindergarten and began playing muisc together when they discovered a shared passion for rock and roll music in high school.

Check out their full live performance on KEXP.

Music Documentary BEAUTIFUL NOISE

Beautiful Noise - a music documentary which was funded via Kickstarter - will premiere on May 31 and screen again on June 1 at the Seattle International Film Festival. 

"The definitive documentary about influential 80’s and 90’s guitar bands who harnessed massively loud sounds using a sea of effects pedals and delivered some of the most BEAUTIFUL NOISE ever recorded.

8 years in the making, with over 50 interviews, band members, music icons and tastemakers.

BEAUTIFUL NOISE is an in-depth exploration of a music movement in the late 20th century, a fascinating period when some innovative musicians mixed guitar noise into conventional pop song structures while maintaining a philosophy of letting the music speak for itself.

Although many of the people interviewed are notoriously press shy they have opened up about their music and experiences from over 20 years ago; how they defied the rules and became sonic innovators that have inspired so many."

Baby In Vain

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

They are female, they are young, they are from Denmark and they make grunge, blues and indie-inspired guitar-based noise rock.

Lola Hammerich, Benedicte Pierleoni and Andrea Thuesen formed the band Baby In Vain in 2010 and managed to break down both age and gender barriers in the genre with songs like "Sweetheart Dreams". I personally love it!

A record player that plays slices of wood

Austrian media artist Bartholomaus Traubeck takes tree rings and turns them into music. To make this music, he saws thin cross sections from trees, then, applying a mathematical formula, he plays the platters on a device that looks like a turntable.

And that's what comes out of it...

 

Jonas David

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Comparing him to Bon Iver is nearly inevitable, so if you like Justin Vernon's music, I have a feeling you're gonna like this guy too. I'm referring to german artist Jonas David.

He started writing and recording his own songs at the age of 14. His debut album "Keep The Times" will send you on a emotional roller-coaster. Always carried by beautifully mellow harmonics, his voice transports temper very honest and sensitive.

Joseph

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Joseph is a band of three sisters from Oregon. Their debut album "Native Dreamer Kin" can be downloaded for free here. An album that promises honest words and genetically perfected harmonies...

Farao

If you don't know her yet, check her out!

Kari Jahnsen aka Farao is a singer and multi-instrumentalist from Norway. Because it's one of her favourite countries, she went to Iceland, precisely Reykjavik, to write and record her self-titled debut EP. 
Farao beautifully mixes folk with chilly electronic textures. Just listen to the EP and let yourself be enchanted...

Need a Name

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Italian born Dario Lupo aka Need a Name is a designer, artist and musician who creates beautiful cinematic, nostalgic, emotional, atmospheric ambient music.

His music is available on his website, there are some free downloads and some albums you can purchase at any price you want. If you need music for your media you can also  license his music.

The future of digital live music performance?

Ok, so this site is dedicated to spread good music, but once in a while, I will post other stuff around music that is worth checking out, like this quite interesting new "music device" created by the artist Imogen Heap (who most of you should already know) and her team.

So what is this new "music device" simply called The Gloves?  As described on her website:

"The Gloves are a cutting edge experimental gestural music ware being developed today for the purpose of Imogen Heap's studio and stage work. 

Using a unique gestural vocabulary, motion data-capture systems, and user interfaces to parameter functions developed by Imogen Heap and her team, artists and other users will be able to use their motion to guide computer-based digital creations. The Musical Gloves are both an instrument and a controller in effect, designed to connect the user fluidly with gear performers usually use, such as Ableton - think minority report for musicians brought to you by the DIY/maker revolution."

So in short, it's a device which enables you to perform your digital music using your body.

In this demo Imogen Heap explains and shows how it works (if you're only interested in the end result, watch the second video):

Yesterday Shop

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Yesterday Shop is a five-man band from Germany. They released their first album in 2012 and created at the same time their own label Trickser.

"Music. It's all about that. And it needs to be listened. That's the task of Trickser."

Playful, melodious, dreamy, melancholic indie/pop/shoegaze - that's Yesterday Shop.

Check out their new album PARADOS coming out May 9th.

Folly Rae

If you don't know her yet, check her out!

Folly Rae is a half-norwegian, half-english singer from Hertfordshire.

She released the song "Make It There" with Koven (previously introduced on this blog) and will hopefully be releasing her own music soon. Here is a little foretaste that sounds really promising...

Segal

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Matthew Simpson aka Segal (also known as Fat Segal) is an electronic musician from Torquay. He's probably best known for his work on the British television series "Skins".

His debut album "The Fens" came out 2013. A few songs from the album are available for streaming on his Soundcloud page. His music is sometimes very loud and crazy, sometimes very enchanting. If you like atmospheric electronic music you should check it out...

Nick Mulvey

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Nick Mulvey is a musician, singer and songwriter based in London, who studied music in Havana. He's a founder member of the band Portico Quartet (which I really invite you to check out too, if you don't know them yet), until he left them in 2011 to pursue his career as a solo artist.

His debut album "First Mind" is set to come out May 12th. Listening to this sampler, I already feel that this is going to be a "must have" album for my summer collection, just perfect for a chilling evening at the beach...

The Acid

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

The Acid is a music project uniting Brighton based Adam Freeland, Californian artist Steve Nalepa and Australian producer Ry X. Their EP has been released just recently and the album is set to come out on July. 

Koven

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Koven is the production alias of London based producer Max Rowat and recent new member Katie Boyle.

According to Viper Recordings "one of the most exciting Bass Music acts to emerge in recent times", and I can only agree. Koven offers an interesting mix of atmospheric and rough dubstep.

Floex

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Tomas Dvorak aka Floex is a clarinetist, composer, producer and multimedia artist from Prague.

Experimental, unique, mesmerizing...

Little Hurricane

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Little Hurricane is a dirty blues/rock duo from San Diego. They are often compared to the White Stripes, but this self-professed "dirty blues" duo's lack of pretension sets them worlds apart from them.

Their new album "Gold Fever" is coming out in a few days. Meanwhile, enjoy this live performance of "Crocodile Tears" from their 2011 album "Homewrecker".

Bandina ie

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

There are great voices out there, and then there are great instrumentalists. I love instrumental bands, because you can totally get lost in the music without getting distracted by words. 

So if you like that kind of music you should check out the band Bandina ie from Copenhagen. They have only published this song until now (you can download it for free on Soundcloud), but there is more to come this year...

Luke Howard

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

If you like Ludovico Einaudi, you might also like Luke Howard, a composer and pianist from Melbourne. He has written music for film and theatre and released his solo album "Sun, Cloud" in 2013.

Phoria

If you don't know them, check them out!

Phoria is a Brighton based band that was officially formed in 2009. They released their EP "Bloodworks" last year and are now touring around the UK. 

The normally piano-centric, electronically-rooted band gives us here a nice acoustic foretaste of their upcoming EP that should come out this year. I'm definately left speechless at Trewin Howard’s vocal tone and looking forward to what's next to come...

Tom Day

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Tom Day is a PhD student from Melbourne who creates beautiful ambient/downtempo/chill music. You can listen to his whole collection on his website (www.tomday.me)

Abby Gundersen

If you don't know her yet, check her out!

Abby Gundersen is a composer and multi-instrumentalist based in Seattle. After touring and recording in support of other artists (like her brother Noah Gundersen or singer-songwriter William Fitzsimmons) she finally released her own songs on Bandcamp.

Here & Sea

If you don't know them yet, check them out!

Here & Sea is a band from Austin, TX. They have recorded two EPs in 2012. Currently they are writing and playing in the Austin area.

Joe Banfi

If you don't know him yet, check him out!

Joe Banfi is a young singer-guitarist from Northwich who fuses folk and grunge, with a voice that goes from a whisper to a scream within the same song, sometimes in the same line.

This song is from his Iron EP, released on Communion Records on 24th September 2012.