Duck. Little Brother, Duck! & Malegoat Split

Duck, Little Brother, Duck! / Malegoat - Split (2015)

So it goes, this is Portland, Oregon's math punks - Duck. Little Brother, Duck!'s swan song. Together with Tokyo's emotional young men group, Malegoat, DLBD! give us one last taste of their incredibly busy and intricate punk music. Calling back to their first album, Survival Is Not a Workout, DLBD! add on to their quick-hit "Tony West" here with "Tony West Pt. 2". It's a very solid finale to one of the most interesting bands I've ever had the pleasure of seeing perform live and support here online.

But, it's only the beginning on the split; after DLBD!'s bombastic last hurrah there is still Malegoat's side to be explored. Malegoat's emo flair is both reminiscent of the Kinsella-wave emo revival here in the states and of Japan's own emo scene including bands like Climb the Mind and Folio. Malegoat have also released a split with the Empire! Empire! (I Was a Lonely Estate), a similar band making good modern day emo music.



Last.fm (Duck. Little Brother, Duck!)
Last.fm (Malegoat)

Monday LXXXXIII

Busted eardrums will thank you.

Special Explosion - Special Explosion (2013)

Special Explosion are the newest members of the Topshelf Records family. This release is a combination of  pretty much all the material that Special Explosion have released in the past all rolled up into one great little record debut of sorts.



Nice indie rock/pop punk.

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Cara Neir - Portals to a Better, Dead World (2013)

Want to bring a little darkness to your holidays? How about some crusty two-piece blackened metal?

Cara Neir's got you covered.


I was pretty surprised to see these guys make Spin's 20 Best Metal Albums as well as Stereogum's however many albums they want to put below Sunbather metal list this year. Hell, Cara Neir even made it onto a College Humor list and labeled as "...great for everyone who would prefer to be dead". I would not go as far as to say that this album would make you want to off yourself, but Portals to a Better, Dead World would definitely make it into my favorite metal things list this year if I had one (even though I wouldn't consider them straight-up metal).

Last.fm

Captain Hollow - Mares Got Strangled (2013)

From what it seems, Mares Got Strangled might be Captain Hollow's "final transmission for a while". As someone who has been following this Bangor/Portland band for a bit now, I'm surprised they haven't broken up yet. Then again, I probably say that every time they return to make one last album.



Mares Got Strangled is without question Captain Hollow's most experimental release. If you get passed the fact that this album is not serious at all, you can really start to enjoy its all-over-the-place-ness.

I also really appreciate the Pooty Tang reference (track 5). The world needs more Pooty Tang references.

Last.fm

Duck. Little Brother, Duck? - No Spitting On Cats During Plague Time

Duck. Little Brother, Duck! - No Spitting On Cats During Plague Time (2013)

Since it's almost that time of the year again (you know, the end of it), it's probably a good time to write about some cool stuff that was released this year that I may not have already or was holding off on. So, here I go.

Portland, Oregon's Duck. Little Brother, Duck! are one of those bands you never know just what they sound like. I mean they have bits of math rock and noodling but they also have a wild array of duel vocals that could almost pass as skramz. You can't just call them math rock and at the same time you can't just call them post hardcore. Duck. Little Brother, Duck! might actually be their own hybrid of punk rock and math rock music that no other bands have yet to sound like. At least, not the way D.LB,D! sound like.

It's this unique mixer of awesome things all at one time that gives me both enjoyment and a challenge to listen to D.LB,D?. The challenge being that I must listen to their music on repeat for hours so I can really soak it all in and make certain that I don't miss anything along the way.

This year, Duck. Little Brother, Duck! sneaked a 7" out into the world in the summer while I was away. The 7incher is called, No Spitting On Cats During Plague Time and features two solid tracks about anteaters and deep sea fish respectively. The tracks are nothing short of what D.LB,D! are all about and pretty much an extension of where they left off with their wild and all over the place 2012 release, Don't Take Our Filth Away. My only gripe with No Spitting On Cats is the fact that it's only two songs and leaves me wanted more, and then I spend the next hour afterwards listening to their other albums (instead of writing my paper for school). I guess I really have no one to blame other than myself for that last bit.


Similar sounds/acts: Girlfriends, Toasted Plastic, Sirs, 1994!, Kidcrash, Natives, My Dad, X-Ray Press, The Reptilian, The Waldos, and a few others that are close.

Official site
Friends For Life Records
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Happy V-Day!

Lover or no lover, here's some music to get you through this lovely day!


Dirty South Joe & Flufftronic - Luvstep IV: A New Hope (2013)

I don't know whether I like these annual mixes by Dirty South Joe & Flufftronic or the teasers posted months in advantage for them...

This years' Luvstep mix includes artists and remixes/remixers such as M83, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Adventure Club, Zeds Dead, Hundred Waters, Star Slinger, and many, many more.


Put this bad boy on and feel the love... all night long. Or approximately one hour and seventeen minutes if you can only sit through it once.

Here's the teaser by the way:

Every year they use a romantic scene from a movie where music is involved and replace that music with a song from the mix. This years' teaser is from Moonrise Kingdom, one of my favorite films from last year because I'm white and love Wes Anderson flix.

Last.fm


The Hundred Acre Woods, Julia Brown, Modern Baseball, Old Gray - 4-Way V-Day Split (2013)

Not only is this 4-way split for Valentine's Day, it's also another one of those releases with a super good cause. All proceeds from the purchase of this 4 song release via Topshelf Records go to V-Day, "a global charity to end violence against women and girls".

The four bands included in this release are The Hundred Acre Woods (whom I've never listen to until now), Julia Brown (Sam Ray of Teen Suicide, etc.'s new and totally listenable project), Modern Baseball (whom I've recently featured on a Friday Streaming), and Old Gray (acoustic like the rest of the pack).



Enjoy and have a great V-Day! <3

By Surprise's New 7'', Criteria OUT NOW!

By Surprise - Criteria (2013)

YEAH, YEAH, YEAH! After about a month (maybe more) of teasing us with the "Criteria" stream, By Surprise finally released their two other gems (about wearing crowns and being tall) that make up this new 7incher.

YEAH, it's only three songs... but come on, at least this means By Surprise have new music and aren't dead like Spraynard or Algernon Cadwallader are now. Which is a shame.

ALSO, for all you magical cable box watchers out there, I believe I heard that "Criteria" is a listenable song on Music Choice University - a new Music Choice Channel for hip stuff apparently.



YEAH!

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