Deerhunter’s Badford Cox wants you to download this virtual 7″ single, released under his Atlas Sound moniker, for free on his blog. It features a fantastic cover of The Five Discs’ “Doctor” backed with a track called “The Screens.” I didn’t really get into Atlas Sound’s last album, Logos, but these tunes really hit the spot on a miserable Hump Day like today.
Atlas Sound – Doctor (The Five Discs cover)
Atlas Sound – The Screens
Words by Scott Curtis.
When PMA asked me to create a mix for them I immediately started putting something together that was all encompassing, a mix to show what Living Ears was about in the past, the present and where I see the future of the site going. I put together a playlist that had just over 40 songs. As I started playing through it what quickly stood out was the number of incredibly strong tracks from the past 3 months or so that stood up to much of what I was pulling from the past. Personal favorites from Panda Bear, The Streets, !!!, LCD Soundsystem and No Age were quickly cut and the list whittled down to a really strong 17.
These are 17 songs –all from this year, some still unreleased– that represent where I think the future of the site, and popular independent music are headed. From woozy dubstep, chillwave, and melodic lofi to pure pop, clouded bloops+bleeps+noise before closing with one of the most direct and beautiful pieces of straightforward indie rock I’ve heard all year.
It’s only a mix but it’s probably my favorite thing I’ve done as a blogger. Much of this music is still relatively undiscovered even by the big blogs and sites out there and I think that most of these tracks are going to be stepping stones for bigger movements that will emerge from their respective genres.
Put on a pair of really good headphones, turn it up and get lost.
Pretty Much Perfect by LivingEars 3984 downloads
Pretty Much Perfect: Tracklist Continue reading →
Artwork by the talented and generous Adam Sparpalius.
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I’m not an entirely huge Fleetwood Mac fan, but I am a fan of the covers some of my favorite bands put out. Remember Vampire Weekend’s cover of “Everywhere”?
Now Atlas Sound has posted a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Walk A Thin Line” on his Deerhunter blog. Originally off Fleetwood Mac’s Tusk LP, “Walk A Thin Line” has been broken down to a haunting acoustic rendition. It always gets me how Atlas Sound can do so much with so little.
The cover is moved along by steady, monotonous guitar strumming but Atlas Sound’s spot-on harmonies give the track an emotional punch that, given time, can come to knock you out. Listen to it here: Continue reading →
It goes without saying that when artists like Atlas Sound and Panda Bear come together and create music, it’s going to be mind bendingly magnificent. “Walkabout” sounds exactly like you think it would sound like: unlike anything you could have ever imagined.The song is buoyant and electronic. The imaginative production and stellar harmonies rival those so perfectly executed on Merriweather Post Pavilion (which happens to be another product of Panda Bear).
“Walkabout” will definitely be on my mind when the time comes to update my list of favorite songs of the year. Listen to it here. Continue reading →
