Back home.

After over a month of traveling, I'm finally back in the UK. The above photo was taken on Highway 61 in Minnesota, near the birthplace of Bob Dylan.

Expect more music posts coming soon....promise! x

New Whirl EP, "Distressor"

Northern California band, Whirl have just released a new EP entitled "Distressor". Considering how new this band is, "Distressor" predicts that Whirl will be a name that most people in the shoegaze scene will know by the time the year is through.

The opening track, "Preface" has Kate Radley-esque talking vocals over Bloody Valentine-inspired riffs. The following track, "Leave", sounds like Chapterhouse if they formed in 2009 and vocals remind me a bit of Aberdeen with added reverb. The 3rd track,"Blue", has an opening riff sounding like something from the Smashing Pumpkins' b-side collection Pisces Iscariot, while the rest of it provides a dreamy, shoegaze landscape full of promise for this new band.

"Ghost" is a hauntingly beautiful track which goes into the more upbeat "Meaningless". "Meaningless" hints of the Pains of Being Pure at Heart and The Telescopes at their best, while "Child" sounds like classic My Bloody Valentine. The last track of the EP, "Sandy", has an acoustic edge, mixed with atmospheric fuzz which fills up the track and provides a beautiful ending.

To buy this EP for $0.10 or more, visit whirl.bandcamp.com

Video: Crystal Castles "Celestica"

The brilliant new video from Crystal Castles for their single "Celestica".



The album, Crystal Castles II, is out now.

Iceland

The 3rd and last travel post (for now) is from Iceland, which could be my favourite country yet. The landscape is beautiful, the people are cool and the music scene is excellent. If you're in Reykjavik I recommend going to 12 Tonar, which is one of the best record shops ever. I could've easily bought a lot more than I did.

A few Iceland photos:

Amsterdam

After Geneva, we went to Amsterdam where I caught up with an old friend and had one of the best holidays of my life. While there, we went to an anti-racism gig where Dutch rocker Elle Bandita was performing.



She reminded me of Juliette Lewis, Karen O. and Joan Jett all at once. Brilliant performer. Check out her tunes on her myspace.

Some other photos from Amsterdam:








the record shop Sugar & Spice. Highly recommended.

Geneva

Hello...I'm back from traveling a bit around Europe. My first stop was Geneva, Switzerland. Even though it was the most expensive place I've ever been, it was beautiful.











more travel posts (and music as well!) coming soon. x