New York songstress Alison Valentine comes up aces on new track “Peanut Butter”. The song earns it’s bread on a set of big time melodies (the sort of melodies and hooks that start the rise of a blogoverse star) that make the track must listen material.
Alison Valentine – Peanut ButterAlison Valentine 
(Facebook)
Rating 8.4
Lupe’s latest from Food & Liquor II (which drops 25th September) sees the Chicago MC jump on a hypnotic-sounding jawn c/o rising producer Mr. Inkredible.
Lupe Fiasco 
(Facebook)
Rating 8.1
Stevie’s a legend and any opportunity to see one of the greatest singers/songwriters/people ever should be savored.
Bloc Party brought their OK live show to an absolutely packed Twin Peaks stage. The Brits, although not world beaters on their instruments, created enough onstage energy to have the house locked in and engaged.
Uncle Jack did his best Johnny Depp impersonation for 70 minutes accompanied by a fiddler, double bassist, and a bathtub stomper (We made the bathtub part up). White’s closer “Seven Nation Army” turned a 50/50 psyched/apathetic crowd into a sea of Euro Cup 2012-esque revelers.
Santi White’s 50 minute Twin Peaks set featured big beats, womps, some neat live instrumentation and lots of crowd participation (incl. bringing up approx. 30-40 kids for 2012 single “Disparate Youth”)
Dallas Green’s City & Colour kept the vibes cool and the performance simple, running through a great set of acoustic-driven paeans to love, loss & life.
“From Nowhere” is the first official release by new Liverpool based artist Dan Croll, a name we’ll no question be hearing a lot more from in the near future. Having already supported the likes of Michael Kiwanuka, James Vincent McMorrow, Map & Atlases and Benjamin Francis Leftwich, Dan has gained noteworthy attention with the release of just a few stellar demo tracks. Dan describes his lively blend of timely indie pop, “Whatever is on around me makes it into my head. I always like to say it’s a balance between acoustic, folk and digital. I’m between two points. I don’t know what you’d call that, a genre that hasn’t got a name”.
One thing for sure, “From Nowhere” is hard to resist. Dan is currently at work recording his debut full length expected sometime in 2013.
Dan Croll 
(Facebook)
Rating 8.3
YEAHHH. The Hetfield “YEAHH” and “HUGGHH” count was high as cartoon band Metallica closed the main stage on Saturday with a two hour set of the band’s classic material.
The swells of fog and mist provided a dreamlike backdrop for Icelandic vets Sigur Ros’s stunning set.
The Kills’ Allison Mosshart gets an A+ for effort (and flailing) for trying to get the semi-disinterested crew of front-of-the-main-stage-assembeled Metallica fans engaged in their set.
Big Boi made good on a MacArthurian promise to return after “technical difficulties” killed off his set last year. The Atlanta MC blew through a commensurable mix of Outkast staples and newer solo material.
Michael Kiwanuka is a star. The soul songwriter filed away another top level performance at the Panhandle Stage.
The scene around Alabama Shakes 4 PM set was one of absolute and total chaos. Drawing a crowd that could compete with many of the headlining acts, Brittany and her lot sounded great even from great distances.
P. The Man brought the Bowie, the big guitars, and vastly improved performance chops to their hour long main stage set.
Uncle Neil put the toy trains away long enough to burn through a scorching mix of newer material (songs about love, Canada, farming, etc ….) and Neil classics (songs about love, Canada, farming, etc).
Growl and Co. have a seemingly inexhaustible repertoire of modern rock radio hits at their disposal and the FF crew (now featuring Pat Smear!) were not shy about their deployment. Closer “Everlong”, one of those perfect alt rock songs, had even the most casual Foo fan head noddin’.
“Chill”wave (C.A.F. Fogwave?) took on a whole new meaning as Southerners Washed Out played their beachside vibe jams to a bathed-in-50-degrees-and-mist house at the Panhandle Stage.
Tennis’ windswept set was defined by OK to good execution of great songs.
Newcomers Of Monsters and Men turned out a HUGE crowd (of fans? or people bored with Beck?) The band’s songs and performance were tight and sharp but definitely after the first twenty minutes or so (at least to the ears of the relatively unfamiliar (us)) started to blend together maybe a little too much.
NYC vets The Walkmen impressed with their trademark big guitar atmospheres (think a spaghetti western set inside a dust-filled city alley) and singer Hamilton Leithhauser’s (one of the best names in rock) awesome Rod Stewart-esque caterwaul.
Fitz and his assembled Tantrums earn their dough on their uptempo high-energy live show, which the band easily and flawlessly delivered to the OSL Friday early birds.
NYC rockers DIIV hit Part Time Punks at The Echo last Sunday night with something fierce. San Francisco trio Melted Toys opened the evening’s set with an eclectic drum machine, two guitars and bass collective. Melted Toys’ mix had a clean mud to it, like a cleaner toned take on some ‘gaze favorites like My Bloody Valentine; indiscernible lyrics juxtaposed to discernible melodies.
The appropriately named, Part Time, also from SF, next filled the venue. The band had a new wave karaoke nostalgia in their style pop. The pretty feverish rhythm section held the backbone to some sickly psychedelic guitar licks and fronted vocals. Cue up your next Miami Vice rerun.
DIIV took stage and got on immediately with their signature instrumental banter. For those unfamiliar, the band’s debut LP titled Oshin is something of a fresh perspective on decades of energy influenced rock music. Any recollections of grunge that come to mind were only reaffirmed when crowd surfers took to flight in the 200+ capacity venue. Frontman Cole Smith at one point asked the crowd how the sound was? “more snare” “more guitar” people said, which Cole then relayed to the soundguy. This of course, not only is one way to piss off most sound-dudes (sound was great that night) but it more so gave the rock show that proper non-chalant fuck-itness.
The baggy-hipster-clad four plowed straight through their boppy, melody guitar-weaved set. DIIV songs keep the vocals to a minimum which seems to play to and against their favor at times, especially when it comes to a crowd of onlookers. The sort of minor detail that is the obvious wall that’s always separating like bands like from a alt-FM standard for the shuffles of the future. Other notable sounds like the ringing delay of guitars seem to now have an eternal viability to the masses (hat-tip’Edge). The band’s long hair and foppish aesthetics aside, you totally would have wanted to hear DIIV come out of the underground in the 80s.
The band at one point mumbled something about “Smells Like Teen Spirit” between songs as they took sips from their tallboy cans of PBR (with the 6-pack plastic rigns still attached to the can). It was all not so really but really. DIIV wrapped their 30 minute set with “Bambi Slaughter” which seemed only appropriate. Catch DIIV on tour and pick up one of the year’s best full-length collections Oshin.
“Let The World See The Light” is something special by budding songstress Mahalia. The young writer sings like it’s something she’s known more than anyone else her whole life. Preview the track below and check out the new Head Space EP.
Mahalia – Let The World See The LightMahalia (Bandcamp)
Rating 8.3
The 1975’s first official release is finally with us and serves to carefully weave together four tracks with a wealth of atmospherics, industrial beats and expansive choruses. Track two, “The City” is definitely the focal point of the EP and whilst everything around it does a great job of setting the scene and showing the band’s capacity for development, it feels like their slingshot is still pulling back. These four young guys from Manchester have set out with a mature approach to representing their hometowns rich musical landscape, past and present, and considering the quality of the demos heard last year I’m sure there’s still more big tracks to come. By Nathan Hetherington
The 1975 (Facebook)
Rating 8.2
Bloc Party return with Four, which drops the week after next. It’s a long-awaited return, preceded by a few US shows including their storm-delayed Lollapalooza set last weekend. These Brits are used to playing for mud-caked fans in the UK, so this was nothing new for them. “Team A” throws us some of those unique rhythms we loved on their Silent Alarm debut. Bloc Party are already saying there may not be a fifth album, so let’s enjoy them while we can. By Bruce Rave
Bloc Party – Team ABloc Party (Facebook)
*Check out Bruce’s Moheak Radio “Go Deep” show on Sunday nights 7-9 pm Pacific, 10-12 am Eastern, 3-5 am GMT. Also listen to past shows at Bruce’s blog and follow Bruce on Twitter.
Our man Colin Monroe provides a smooth croon on the hook for “Enemy of the Great”, a new Christian Rich-produced track from VA rapper The Fieldz. The Virginia newcomer has a mixtape project Soar Loser in the works. If “Enemy of the Great” is any indication, SL is a tape we’ll definitely need some ears on.
The Fieldz – Enemy of the Great (Feat. Colin Munroe)The Fieldz 
(Facebook)
Rating 8.2
Mysterious internet musician Youan comes through with his/her/its best track to date with the relaxed indie R&B of “Must Be Love”. Look out for a new seven-track mixtape from Youan by the end of the month. (KKS)
Youan (Facebook)
Rating 8.3
