Frankie Rose #3 - Sorrow

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And so starts a new week, I hope you enjoyed your weekend - "Sorrow" is the name of the track I'm writing about today, the first song to be taken from Herein Wild, the forthcoming album from the prolific Frankie Rose... It's a somewhat apt title for my state of mind yesterday, thankfully I'm now refreshed after a very early night and ready to face sunlight again - why do we do these things to ourselves?!

"Sorrow" is perhaps the name of the track but it's anything but as breezy guitars, purposeful drums and bright synths combine to create a luscious, upbeat melody that seems to be the perfect follow-up to lasts years 80's influenced Interstellar. We've got until October 7th to wait for the album, I'm expecting it to be just as good.

La Luz #3 - Big Big Blood

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Some fine news for one of 2013's best new breakthrough acts La Luz, the Seattle quartet have found their perfect home on local label Hardly Art and have announced their debut album It's Alive for October 15, to celebrate they've shared its first single "Big Big Blood" as a free download (below).

Those familiar with the sound from last years Damp Face EP will be happy to hear a track full of La Luz's typically haunting, atmospheric sound, combining dry and dusky surf guitar twangs with delicious, entwining harmonies from the heavens, "Big Big Blood", as the title suggest, is dripping with both midnight dreams with more than a dashing of sinister edge.

2013 shows no sign of letting up with great albums, October should now have another.

Everything By Electricity #3 - Novocaine

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Everything By Electricity return with new / old song "Novocaine" which is actually one of three tracks which took my fancy way back when (March 2012), now re-birthed with a more synthetic sound the London based trio have given the track a similar make-over, the result is equally spectacular...

Whilst not completely gone, the anthemic, ringing power pop guitar chords have been transformed with layers of glistening electronic beauty, slower and infinitely more beautiful than ever before "Novocaine" now drips with icy cool synths and soft, silky vocals throughout and to put it simply, is adjective defying gorgeous.

Now all we're missing is live shows and a release date...

Dott #2 - Day That I Found You

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Dott produced one of the songs of last summer with the super sweet should-have-been pop hit brilliance of "Let's Do It", now twelve months later the Galway based quartet return with news of a debut album Swoon, due November 5th via Graveface Records and not one but two tracks that will be included on it to stream...

Those familiar with last years Button EP will be instantly familiar with the sounds of "Day That I Found You", where beautiful pop harmonies and crunching guitar riffs echo around precise drum beats that immediately create nice, shiny thoughts in your mind. Similarly "Start All Over" is filled with a sense of youthful energy and combines 60's inflected garage rock and Spector group vocals with effortless ease.

Dott create nostalgic and infectious tunes that are easy to connect with whilst their pure and warming pop melodies wash over you with a dreamlike blanket - what's not to like...

Pascal Pinon - Twosomeness

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Musical discoveries can happen at any time, you don't have to find an artist when they've two dozen fans on Facebook or discover them on a buzz-blog to become a new fan of an artist, you can create the same bond with acts news or old (although this blog does tend to focus on acts still producing music today) whenever you happen to stumble across them, which leads me to Pascal Pinon, my latest 'overdue' discovery...

The twin pairing of Jófríður and Ásthildur from Reykjavík, Iceland Pascal Pinon released their second album Twosomeness back in January and played in London back in March. Since my discovery last weekend I've ordered the record (available via Norman Records in the UK) and whilst I'm waiting for it to arrive I have been enjoying the two tracks I'm going to focus on here.

"Bloom" is all beautiful, spine-tingling atmosphere, equal parts haunting emotion and other-worldy fogginess, like a hazy dawn on a dazzling summer day, the sparse, disarming instrumentation creates an intimate backdrop for the sisters' beguiling harmonies, their soft, gentle whispers and poetic songcraft captivates from beginning to end.

A similar feast for your senses can be heard on "When I Can't Sleep", like-wise minimalist and perfectly constructed, where a charming melody of twinkling keys and glockenspiel creates widescreen dreamscapes to completely immerse yourself in - I'm completely hooked and 2013 has another album to add to the potential end of year lists.

Oh Land #2 - Renaissance Girls

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Pop music isn't generally my "thing" but I have always been prone to the odd stray towards the mainstream - not manufactured I'll add - Lana Del Rey was my album of the year last year after-all (a few of you may raise an eyebrow after the comment I just made!). Other occasions in memory include Alphabeat, whose debut album and shows (yes, I saw them twice) at The Great Escape in 2010(?) were nothing short of mood-enhancing wonders and then Oh Land, who flutters multiple genres within her dance-floor friendly Scandipop anthems.

I first fell for her music back at Glastonbury 2011 whereI saw her perform two intimate shows, at The Crows Nest and The Rabbit Hole, one half-acoustic which highlighted a truly breathtaking ethereal voice and one 'proper' set full of dynamic, kinetic energy and propulsive pop hits. Do also check out her version of "Bloodbuzz Ohio" - it's a totally different take on the track and I think it's rather great.

Anyway, the reason I'm here is for Oh Land's come-back single, taken from the follow up to 2011's self-titled second album (Wish Bone due September 24 via Federal Prism), "Renaissance Girls" could almost be a sister track to earlier songs "Sun of a Gun" and "White Nights", full of clattering beats and ultra-infectious rhythms topped by Nanna's soaring vocals - it's about the best power pop song I've heard all year.