KILLER COVERS || Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti: "Baby"

As much as any number of current bands are doing retro sounds like 60s girl pop and 70s soul right, there's a certain amount of modernization that slips in during the songwriting process; they never really sound like a song that was both written and recorded in the era indie-band-du-jour is going for... they may get the latter correct, but it's hard to shake off all the influences that have emerged in the 30-40 years since.

Calexico: "Para"

Calexico are back after an extended break with a new track that manages to squeeze a helluva lot of epic into less than four minutes. Aside from 2010's Circo soundtrack the band haven't put out a proper studio album since 2008's Carried to Dust. "Para" finds them right back on track with a lot of tread on the tires.

Algiers will be released September 11 on Quarterstick.

Ean: "AulderKincher"

Essentially footwork with a bit of the ol' echo chamber sinister-ness dubstep is known for, "AulderKincher" is the lead off track from Ean's upcoming five track EP Darknet. Out July 2 on Cosmic Bridge.

Grizzly Bear: "Sleeping Ute"

A bit of a 60's prog guitar riff backboning this one. There is some well-produced instrumental wanking going on in the middle that would make Mars Volta proud, but there's no shame in wanking in spite of what people will tell you. The title for this here new Grizzly Bear opus is non-existent at present, but we can tell you it will be out September 8 on Warp.
(via Stereogum):

KILLER COVERS || St. Vincent: "Some of Them Are Old"

Apparently this was recorded live at a house party with Annie Clark and Steve Nieve (keyboard player for Elvis Costello) contributing. It's not a new St. Vincent song but rather a cover of a pre-ambient Brian Eno track from 1973.
(via Listen Before You Buy):

Vorheez: "Place to Be" [feat. El da Sensei & Homeboy Sandman]

Loud horns - as in marching band loud - are ultra common in commercial rap these days, but Vorheez brings more of a simmering, cinematic vibe to "Place to Be". As much as I like to pretend I know everything there is to know about music I'm afraid I can't place the sample. Leave a comment if you recognize it. Also can we just go ahead and recognize that Homeboy Sandman may just be the most compelling rapper out there right now?

Merchandise: "Time"

Flux capacitor set to 1981. Floridians Merchandise aren't bringing a lot of modernity to the table here, mostly content to ride the Joy Division / New Order template, but when the results are this inspired who cares? To top it off, you can download the album for free here.

[UPDATE 7/20/12: added music video]:

FAY: "Shadows I"

One trend that I wholeheartedly loathe is the prevalence of "snippet" tracks on Soundcloud. This is where an artists - usually in the electronic/DJ purview - doesn't feel like giving up a whole song, even streaming only, so he or she will either stitch together a single Soundcloud upload containing snippets of several new songs, or else they will just upload a minute or two of a longer track as a single file, and it's up to you to read the fine print to see if that was the whole song or if there's more to be had.

It's aggravating, like I say.

Sunless '97: "Azul"

"Azul" means "blue" but Sunless '97 don't get too downer on this track, it's more of an upbeat melancholia, if that makes sense. There's a lot of disparate elements here that could have taken this in a wrong direction - the squalling sax, the breathy French porn theme vocals - but it's the perfect example of sum > parts.

The "Body Weather" / "Azul" single is out July 2 on Moshi Moshi.
(via ABEANO):

Fantastic Mr. Fox: "Pascal's Chorus" [feat. Alby Daniels]

Being largely based around metronomic rhythms intended for dancing, electronic music has historically been pretty repetitive, a predictable beat necessary for keeping the dancefloor full. In latter years production has largely shifted to the bedroom, and producers in turn have been increasingly turning toward headphone-friendly jams. "Pascal's Chorus" isn't too schizophrenic... it rides basically the same beat and melody throughout, but it encourages you to ignore all that and listen for the grace notes instead. At seven minutes long there are a lot of them.

The San'en EP is out now on Black Acre. Limited vinyl box set available here.