February 9th, 2010 | by hannahsimon | published in dance, electro pop | 2 comments
All hail Hot Chip, who I have just crowned kings of the British electropop scene. Exhibit A: Their new album, “One Life Stand,” the fourth in a string of solid releases (“Coming on Strong,” “The Warning,” and “Made in the Dark” preceded). This album truly sets Hot Chip apart from the other UK bands clamoring for the electro/dance/synth spotlight.
February 5th, 2010 | by hannahsimon | published in electro pop, female vocalists | 5 comments
Listing musicians like Madonna and Prince as her influences, La Roux (meaning “red-haired”) has been criticized for being too polished, but if you tend to like clean electro beats, La Roux’s delivery satisfies. The androgynous lead singer Eleanor “Elly” Jackson serves up ’80s synth-pop that is catchy, but not very inventive. My first impression? Sing-along ’80s dance hits.
December 7th, 2009 | by jason grishkoff | published in dreamwave/chillwave, electro pop | 8 comments
Causers is sure to be Laptop-crafted indie pop heavy on the synthesizers and light just about everything else. Toro y Moi makes lo-fi fuzz pop perfectly representative of 2009’s latest craze, dreamwave. Jarring walls of synthesizers coat glitchy, dubbed down percussion in warming chord sequences – joined without fail by Bundick’s softly sung vocals. The whole feel of Toro y Moi is very ethereal and shoegazey but at the same time clearcut pop music you can dance to.
November 8th, 2009 | by jason grishkoff | published in dreamwave/chillwave, electro pop | 1 comment
Toro y Moi needs to be listened to with the volume so that it can overwhelm you with fuzziness. If you aren’t cranking your speakers, it just might not work. The solo project of 23-year-old south Carolinan, Chaz Bundick, Toro y Moi has all the cutting edge modernity of Passion Pit, Memory Tapes and Wavves. That is to say, he knows how to pump out intense beats using his synths and laptop samples.
October 20th, 2009 | by Jess Alatorre | published in electro pop, electronic, indie pop | 13 comments
The Postal Service electronica beats are certainly here, but Owl city’s “ocean eyes” album may have a bit more pop than the slightly more indie songs on “Give up.” Ocean eyes is heavy on the synth, the electro sounds, and the ready-made-for-public-consumption bubblegum pop beats.
October 16th, 2009 | by jason grishkoff | published in electro pop
What do you get when you combine a classical pianist and a self-professed fan of “dark rock”? Apparently, if it’s the right two people, a pretty sweet band. Home Video is that band. As far as EP’s go, this is about as good as an EP can be in terms of displaying all of a band’s strengths in a very brief time period.
September 14th, 2009 | by jason grishkoff | published in electro pop, electronic | 2 comments
psychic chasms is both interesting and headache inducing — i blame the headache part on the screeching synth solos, which somehow manage to awaken some form of evil monster in my head. i have a feeling some of you might like that; others might detest it. i’m still on the fence.
my first earthquake – downstairs
July 27th, 2009 | by jason grishkoff | published in dance, electro pop, female vocalists, indie rock, punk
“Who among us can resist that sweet spot between synthesized electro-pop and hooky indie rock — that fertile, eminently familiar territory mined by modern outfits like Mates of State and Matt and Kim? Not San Francisco group My First Earthquake, whose debut blends those bands’ pop might and indie cool with strong, irreverent female vocals to varying degrees of success” – eastbayexpress.com
The Chives – Arnold
Strange Birds – Strange Birds EP
Max and the Wild Things – The Grass Is Always Greener
The Dirty Disco – Sista!
Watch Out For Rockets – Beasts With Hearts of Gold
