Bands to Care About: ender belongs to me

If you tried looking up ender belongs to me online, you wouldn't find much out about them. This isn't due to some “mystery” angel the band is going for, even if the lack of pictures or their song art would have you think other wise. It's due to the simple, unfortunate fact that few people have heard of ender belongs to me's music. Which is a fucking shame, so let The Creative Intersection help fix that.

Ender belongs to me is a duo based out of California who slowly over the course of two years have recorded a number of songs and EPs over that time period, each based around the same acoustic guitar and casio keyboard, the only music tools the duo have. Despite this, the band has the ability to really stretch into a multitude of different areas. Just compare the dark, 80s-esque goo that is “Kick/Scream” to the droney, tropical dance beat that drives “All Working”, and one would do double takes to make sure it's the same band producing the electronic dreampop that is coming out of the speakers.

(mp3) ender belongs to me-Kick/Scream
(mp3) ender belongs to me-All Working

Oh and the lyrics. The band can warp them and layer as many effects on the vocals and lyrics as they want, but they can't disguise the pain and sadness that is contained within them. This is particularly true with the band's newest song “New Light”. A slow burning beauty, it reminds me of a more hazy and drugged up take on Girls' “Vomit”, or something Flower Orgy might produce if they weren't trying to be so psychedelic. It's insanely beautiful track that rises ever so elegantly, especially when the female vocals come in.

(mp3) ender belongs to me-New Light

Currently the band is on a semi-hiatus, as one of the band members is in rehab. However, all is not sad in the land of ender belongs to me. The ever great Crash Symbols plan to release the band's newest EP Memory later this month, and the band's previous two EPs soon as well. Start paying attention now because when those EPs start rolling out, ender belongs to me's sadness and beauty will blow up. I guarantee it.

Links:

ender belongs to me's Facebook
Download ender belongs to me's discography at their bandcamp 

Bands to Care About: Heidi Klum's Bangs

Heidi Klum's Bangs are not trendy in any sense of the word. Their name is not particularly cool, they don't live in Brooklyn or LA (actually some place called Mountain Home, Arkansas), and their debut album was not only released on CD, but is meant as the whole it was crafted as, which in turn is a sort of epic narrative. No, what Heidi Klum's Bangs is is one of "those" bands. One of "those" bands that this stumbled upon completely by accident or luck, that for some completely unexplainable reason is unknown to everyone, yet the people who do know about them just won't shut up about them.

Heidi Klum's bangs formed last year by two brothers, Zach and Dylan Beck, who mange to perform a myriad of minor miracles with their music. The sound produced could be linked to something resembling an alternate universe version of Nana Grizol. A clear love Elephant 6 (especially Neutral Milk Hotel) is present here, as everything from a glowing acoustic guitar to a mini horn section are layered over near stream-of-conscious style delivery. It's a testament to the band that the album, Palace Pier, has an unbelieveable warmth emenating from every part of it, despite being crafted in a basement on a digital recorder. For anyone who ever gets a physical copy of the album, it's like holding a treasure in your hands, as nearly every aspect of it has been lovingly hand crafted by Zach Beck himself.

Heidi Klum's Bangs is the product of the purest desire to create music. While some might (but who would be that cruel), as to write off the band as "twee", "simplistic", or "Elephant 6 rip-off", nothing could be further from the truth. Words fail to describe how wonderful this band is, in every sense. Palace Pier is currently available from the band's bandcamp, so please infest in the utter wonderfulness that is this band.

(mp3) Heidi Klum's Bangs-The Sea Runs Red and Gold
(mp3) Heidi Klum's Bangs-Skye
(mp3) Heidi Klum's Bangs-The Horizon Drawing Near

Links:

Heidi Klum's Bang's Bandcamp

Bands to Care About: No Demons Here

Like every band that is ruling the indie scene these days, you can't love one band without getting into all of their members' various side projects or other musical projects with other members of other cool indie bands. That's the case for Big Troubles, the lo-fi troubadours who's LP is for some reason something I really like yet haven't gotten around to talking about for some very bizarre reason. No Demons here, the pseudonym for Big Troubles and Fluffy Lumbars bassist Luka Usmiani, is another in the list of these bands, like Alex Bleeker and Art Museums before him. And like those artists, No Demons here make lo-fi music in a whole different aspect of what the main band does. With No Demons Here, what comes out is this thick melodic music, triggering instant nostalgia to something in your past because it's the type of music that can do that. At least that's the feel that gets set with nighttime "Every Second Darker". That wonderful song will appear on the band's second cassette tape, In Aluminum Headaches, soon on the band's run Croatia Tapes.

(mp3) No Demons Here-Every Second Darker

The band also has their highly recommended debut cassette Boy Eaten By Things In Water streaming and dowloadable on their Bandcamp, along with a physical cassette form from Croatia Tapes as well. I can also not go without say that the band did an standout split cover of "Wondering Boy Pet/Game of Pricks" on the outstanding Guided By Guided By Voices comp. There is also this cool, also nostalgia inducing video for the track "TV" that could not go unposted.

(mp3) No Demons Here-Wondering Boy Pet/Game Of Pricks






Links:

No Demons Here on Myspace
Check out all No Demons Here releases here, at Croatia Tapes

Bands to Care About: Sparky Deathcap

If your awkward college/post college years were made into a movie, Sparky Deathcap would be the one hired to make the soundtrack. Comparisons can be made to Smog or The Microphones, but due to Sparky's deep seeded love of Pavement and other '90s indie rock, some humor and irony is injected to the formula as well. This creates something more akin to what Superman Revenge Squad is doing or if David Berman of the Silver Jews started touring by himself and a guitar.

Creating the persona five years ago, Rob Taylor has been crafting his woeful acoustic tunes for anyone willing to hear them. His first release was a 100 press, all hand made, mini-album titled Let's Build a Fire for Pulsar Records. Suffice to say, it would go on to sell out. Before putting out his next EP, Sparky Deathcap wound up doing a lot of tour, going across Europe, playing multiple music festivals, and even opening for the great Daniel Johnson on a few US dates as well as playing with Los Campesinos! too. In fact, Sparky Deathcap is now a sort of 8th member of the band, playing guitar and drums with them live. During all this, Sparky also found time to self-release a brand new EP on his own Nettlejam Records in 2009 titled Tear Jerky. It's only five songs, but it manages to hit you hard, and it's very impressive how he manages to manipulate standard acoustic tracks into something so much more with feedback, drum loops, hand claps, and more.

While Sparky Deathcap is a bit preoccupied with playing with Los Campesinos!, he still has forgotten about his own work. He recently started recording demos, and has a (no joke) ukulele opera based on love in the works that he wants to have ready for this upcoming Valentines Day. Rob Taylor's is a breath of fresh air in these over self-obsessed, over electronic days, not mention his music is quite beautiful, in a self-depreciating sort of way.
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On a small side note, Rob Taylor is also a master illustrator, and draws incredibly dark, incredibly funny comics as well. They can be seen on his webpage as well.

(mp3) Sparky Deathcap-Mountain and Central
(mp3) Sparky Deathcap-Glasgow is a Punk Rock Town
(mp3) Sparky Deathcap-Blossomwing

Links:

Sparky Deathcap Website
Sparky Deathcap on Myspace

Bands To Care About: Dead Gaze

I live in the South. Always have, and for some reason I have the sneaking suspicion that I stay here for quite some time. I bring this up because except for a few select areas, it in large part lacks any creativitiy or uniqueness to it, especially in music. Which is why I was so happy to stumble upon the music of Dead Gaze, the one man project of R. Cole Furlow who happens to making his music straight out of all places Mississippi.

The only possible way to describe the music of Dead Gaze is eclectic. He first started recorded the project in late 2008/early 2009 and introduced the world to his music through his The Pride of Calling Panther Lake LP which he released for free onto the webs. It was a strange and wonderful mix of glo-fi influenced but not glo-fi itself airy pop tunes cupeled with for straight ahead rock tunes which sounded like Ty Segall fronting the Apples in Stereo with the Flaming Lips producing. Suffice to say it was great. He then released the End of Days, Why Not You cassette earlier this year on the increasingly great Mirror Universe Tapes, an outstanding collection pulled from a bunch of his previous digital only release.

His next project is another tape, this time a split with Grey Things on the UK label Clan Destine Records. Some tracks from the cassette have already been out floating around the web and they are some of the most incredibly catchy of the year. I can only hope that you do the same and listen to the glory of something like "Remember What Brought Us Here", so you too are drawn into the incredible, fuzzed out and colorful world of Dead Gaze.

(mp3) Dead Gaze-I’m A Mess When Your Gone
(mp3) Dead Gaze-This Big World
(m4a) Dead Gaze-Remember What Brought Us Here



Links:

Dead Gaze On Myspace
Buy End of Days, Why Not You here, from Mirror Universe Records

Bands to Care About: Benjamin Shaw

Acoustic/folk music tends to fall into two categories: Nick Drake or Bob Dylan. The Nick Drakes make sweet, intimate music meant to be heard late at night. The Bob Dylans tell bigger stories with bigger sound, but lose some of that intimacy in the process. Few manage to pull both off without it backfiring horribly, but Benjamin Shaw manages to in strides, and he’s only 22!

Every good word that usually gets associated with this music should be applied here: Raw, riveting, intimate sounds with masterful and pretty heart-wrenching lyrics. But add some new words to the fry as well: Distortion, self-deprecation, and humor. His debut “I’ve Got the Pox, the Pox is What I Got” (review coming very soon) is a shining example of this. You can’t help but sniffle a little to the longing of “Chocolate Girl” then laugh to the lyrics of “When I Fell Over in the City”. The title track is a two-part song, is 10 minutes long, and is so masterfully crafted that it just breezes by in a mental two minutes.

Shaw isn’t resting on his laurels either. Mot only was his debut released on Audio Anti-Hero (a rising indie label if I’ve ever seen one), but he already has new songs up, and supposedly a full length album in the works. Plus he covered label mates Nosferatu D2's “It’s Christmas Time (for God’s Sake)” and possible made it even more depressing. I can’t wait to see what he puts out next.





Links:

Benjamin Shaw Website
Benjamin Shaw Myspace

Bands to Care About: Von Hayes

There’s two things you should know about Von Hayes, right away. First, no, Von Hayes the baseball player did not start making music, thank god! Second, Von Hayes the band is obsessed with Guided By Voices. How obsessed are they? Let’s see the check list. Collage style artwork? Check. 20 song album with song length averaging about a minute thirty each? Singers singing in flux British accents? Check? Todd Todis working on both their debut album Evident Eyelid and EP Quartered Lots for the Umbrella Soldier? Check. Yet, despite all the similarities, the band never feels like a parody or copy. Mainly because every song feels and sounds just as good as anything GBV did back in their mid 90’s heyday. Everything you loved about Bee Thousands or Alien Lanes is remade into a shiny new package to enjoy once again. With just the right balance of acoustic jangles like “Madison Arms” and over fuzzed guitar wailing tracks like “Karen Dreams in Hardcore”. “Life Kicks Ass” could easily be the original version of “Salty Salute”  They even have the balancing act of GBV, splitting the son writing between both guitar players, Peter Bothum and Andrew Zitelli. Yes, it does feel at times the band is putting themselves in a corner with their commitment to the Guided by Voices sound. However, even if they can never expand their sound, Von Hayes are making some of the best old school indie rock around, and I know will be sing along to “Prestige Replicas” for a long time 

(mp3) Von Hayes-Ellen Degenerates

(mp3) Von Hayes-Prestige Replicas

(mp3) Von Hayes-Legacy Luggage

Von Hayes' Myspace

Bands to Care About: The Capstan Shafts

It’s incredible what it takes to be noticed in the indie rock world. 10 years into recording under the name The Capstan Shafts, Dean Wells has released 7 albums and 10 eps along with 4 records under various monikers. Yet despite all this insane productivity, chances are very high you’ve never heard of him. Why? Because he does nothing but record! He has only preformed three times, never stays signed to an label for more than a few releases, and hasn’t set up his own myspace page. Still, do what you can to track down his work because it is some of the best bedroom pop around. Recording everything on 4-track and playing every instrument, Wells is like a mad man, cranking out these lo-fi nuggets so delicious you fear you’ll get an uncurable sugar high just listening to one of his album. The Guided by Voices influence is hard to ignore, but with Wells better mastery of his instruments and trying to be more Tobin Sprout than Robert Pollard, it amounts to something much more. Plus he has a song called “Space Nut to Ape Length”. How can you not love it?

(mp3) The Capstan Shafts-Space Nut To Ape Length

(mp3) The Capstan Shafts-Middles of June
(mp3) The Capstan Shafts-Chandelier of Bad Ideas

The Capstan Shafts Unoffical Myspace

Rainbow Quartz (The Capstan Shafts most current label)

Bands to Care About: iji

The best way to look at iji (pronounced ee-hee) is a combination of Guided by Voices and Wavves. I know that with all the backlash hitting Wavves right now that might not be the best way to introduce a band, but trust me when I say that iji is the best of both worlds. Iji is the mutant baby and greatest creation of Zach Burba (formally of now gone Seashell) a man who since starting the band in 2007 has made 5 releases and has remained hidden by releasing 2 on cassette label Lost Sound Tapes and the newest one on his own. However, do what you can to track these down because it is some of the best Tobin Sprout/Guided By Voices songs out their. While these were made entirely on four tracks and recorded all on his own, none of the standard lo-fi hiss and fuzz leaks through, actually good in this case because while most bands use it to cover up unfully formed songs, iji’s songs shine right through in all their power popinfluenced indie rock glory.


iji-Long Branches and Roots



Also iji will be doing their largest tour ever starting on July 4th. It will start in Settale and all dates will be with label mates Watercolor Paintings. Also half the dates will be with friends Math the Band and the other half with Fishboy.

July 4th Seattle, WA @ DANCLEVANIA
July 5th Victoria, BC @ BAYANIHAN COMMUNITY CENTER
July 6th Vancouver, BC @ THE SHED
July 7th Whidbey Island, WA @ ELI + ASHLEY'S HOUSE
July 8th Spokane, WA @ The EMPEREAN
July 9th Missoula, MT @ THE ZACC GALERY
July 13th Omaha, NB @ THE PIZZA SHOPPE COLLECTIVE
July 14th Des Moines, IA @ VAUDVILLE MEWS
July 16th Milwaukee, WI @ THE CHICKEN HOLE
July 18th Chicago, IL @ THE FUNHOUSE
July 20th Bloomington, IN @ RACHEL'S CAFE
July 21st Grand Rappids, MI @ THE DAAC
July 22nd Ferndale, MI @ LEROY ST. RECORDS
July 23rd Toledo, OH @ THE BLACK CHERRY
July 24th Cleveland, OH @ BELLA DUBY
July 27th Burlington, VT @ 242 MAIN
July 28th Providence, RI @ THE SWEAT SHOP
July 31st Brooklyn, NY @ DEATH BY AUDIO
Aug 1st Haverton, PA @ HAVORFORD FREE LIBRARY
Aug 2nd Baltimore MY @ CHARM CITY ART SPACE
Aug 3rd Richmond Va @ THE TINDERBOX
Aug 4th Greensboro, NC @ MAYA GALLARY
Aug 7th Gainesville, FL @ WAYWARD COUNCIL
Aug 10th Knoxville, TN @ THE BISCUIT HOUSE
Aug 16th Austin, TX @ HOLE IN THE WALL
Aug 17th Houstin, TX @ SUPER HAPPY FUN LAND
Aug 20th Tucson, AZ @ DRY RIVER
Aug 21st Phoenix, AZ @ THE TRUNKSPACE
Aug 24th Santa Barbera, CA @ BIKO GARAGE
Aug 30th Seattle, WA @ CAROUSEL FEST

(Other planned shows in Athens, Washington DC, Tronto, and more have yet to be booked and thoes dates will be posted in a latter post)

iji myspace
iji store set up by their current label Lost Sound Tapes

Bands to Care About: DANANANANAYKROYD

When a band thinks it’s a good idea to chant their name in the opening song of their debut album, does anyone think something good will come out of it? Is there a band meeting deciding that it’s a good idea to yell their name out to who’s listening. Band names are after thoughts, created usually just so the clubs have something to list them as. However I doubt there are few bands namest better suited for a band since the Butthole Surfers. Any fan of Los Campesinos! will be crawling on the floor for their latest worship. DANANANANAYKROYD mash perfectly with Los Campesinos! right down to the yelps of the band in unison and the self loathing lyrics. Don’t cry Camepsino clone yet, however. Danana is more bent on the sound than the lyrics, incorporating twin drummers and two singers into the mix. The best way to understand Danana’s sound is three-fourths Los Campesinos! with an added cup of hardcore/screamo. Normally, this is a recipe for disaster. However, due to having great taste in music and not wanting to be corporate slime, the sound (self dubbed "fight pop") they make is actually creative and dare I say (gasp!) fun.

DANANANAYKROYD-Pink Sabbath
DANANANAYKROYD-Totally Bone

DANANANAYKROYD Myspace

Bands to Care About: Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned

Hearing about them for the first time, it would not surprise me if Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned didn’t instantly grab your attention. "A folk band with horns you say? Next!" But trust me when I say that this a band that should be payed attention. While you wouldn’t think so at first, the jazz-style horns truly add to the regular band. Not to mention the band really wears their influences on their sleeve. While this is normally a bad thing, showing the band as no talent and must copy the music they love, Sgt. Dunbar’s influences happen to be the last, great Neutral Milk Hotel and Mircophones. The band manages to sound like them (singing saws and interpersonal lyrics) and original(darker tones and jazzy sound) at the same time. Ok this does sound a little cheesy and I may be sucker for singing saw, but in this acoustic guitar revival (Fleet Foxes I’m looking at you), I don’t understand why the hell these guys haven’t gotten more attention.

Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned-A March Through Charles Mingus Garbage Pile

Sgt. Dunbar and the Hobo Banned-Move Your Memories, Pt. II

Sgt. Dunbar Myspace

Also the wonderful people of the blog fork/knife posted an interview with the band which can be read here.

Bands to Care About: Micachu and the Shapes

One thing we music commenters love to do is pigeon-hole bands. The smaller the hole, the better. However, Micachu (Mica Levi) and here band The Shapes (Mark Pell on drums and Raisa Khan on keyboard and computer) have arrived not only being one of the best bans around, but also one of the most undefinable as well. If you took the songs Heather Lewis did in the Beat Happening and added an electronica coat, you might have an idea of a Micachu song. Quarky, sparse, and utterly creative, it’s incredible the sounds made by a band purposely trying to limit the amount of instruments it uses. The production by Matthew Herbert doesn’t hurt either. Her debut ‘Jewellery’ was finally released on in the States and is highly recommenced. Also a mixtape made by the band can be downloaded here.

Micachu Website

Micachu and The Shapes’ Myspce

Bands To Care About: Castledoor

Bands to Care About: Castledoor

A band that rarely escapes from their West Californian Coast home, Castledoor have been making beautiful indie-pop since 2005. Formed out of the remains of boy band (a religious boy band at that) Plus One, Nate Colmes and Gabe Combs went out to create a better band. Unsurprisingly, expectations for the band were low at best. Surprisingly, however, they wound up creating something great. Consider this the indie equivalent to when Justin Timberlake went solo. Thankfully, the new stuff doesn’t make you gag as much as the old stuff did.

Since 2005, there have been two releases by the six piece band, the eight song Follow the Dove EP on July 25th, 2006 and the ‘Til We Sink 7 inch vinyl on July 29th, 2008. Follow the Dove is one of the best debuts of a band in a long time. Nate’s time spent in that boy band actually payed off for something because his vocals are great. Keyboards are front and central ( in a good way) on this album and the whole album has a nice "escaping" lyrical theme. It ends with "Remember When" an acoustic song that doesn’t come off as a cheesy ending.



The ‘Til We Sink 7 inch continues were Follow the Dove ended, but with a few twists here and there. While it’s still indie-pop at its best, new influences have begun to creep in along with a slightly more depressing theme. "Nightlight" is a great example of this, a haunting number that fits perfectly with the band.



Now in the studio, hopefully we can get that full-length album we have been waiting for, for so long. And please let it come with a long tour.
Side Note: Besides the two official releases, Castledoor has put out a non-album few songs and videos. I suggest you look for them as well.

Website: http://www.myspace.com/CastledoorMusic