WHEN THE SKY WAS RED.

There's no denying it, Kyla La Grange is here to stay. Don't let her manic pixie dream charm fool you, her songs pack serious emotional heat; visceral knockouts with no pulled punches in sight. "Been Better" is her latest offering, coming off like a statement of intent from La Grange and an exciting preview of what we can expect on her forthcoming debut album, all British folk-rock peppered with a little Americana that tastes like a surprisingly delicious combo of Fleetwood Mac and Aerosmith. The track steamrolls along relentlessly as it's supercharged by Kyla's cathartic self-assurance, which literally pours out of her in the song's epic conclusion. And of course it doesn't hurt that her endearingly smoky pipes reek of Natasha Khan with the fierce bite of Cat Power. If you're into living a life without regrets and happen to be in London on July 12, you should probably find your way to the Lexington to do it up large with our friends at Chess Club for the "Been Better" single release party, big styyyyle.

MP3: "Been Better" - Kyla La Grange [exclusive]

CMJ 2010 // NEW SHAPES 2.0

It's that time again, as we make our way towards mid-October and the collective gaze of the music industry falls upon CMJ and all the beautiful chaos that comes with it. Last year we brought you the first annual New Shapes party, which saw everyone from Theophilus London and Darwin Deez to Chief and Local Natives grace the stage at Santos Party House. This year we're going even bigger with it, moving to the wide open spaces of Brooklyn and the multiple stages of Public Assembly, and it's finally time to bring the curtain back on what's easily the biggest event we've ever been a part of.

Chess Club are once again our partners in promotional crime for this event, and we've also teamed up with the UK's Plugged In PR to help us bring you one of the best and brightest line ups on offer at CMJ this year. It's all going down at Public Assembly on Thursday the 21st of October, from 3pm to 3am, with two stages and over 20 amazing new bands playing over the course of the evening. Below you'll find the full line up and schedule for the night, complete with mp3s so you can sample the artists on the menu for the evening. Tickets are currently on sale via the event page HERE, and at only $12 a pop that's a hell of a bang for your buck so you'd do well to move quickly and reserve your ticket today. And as this is an official CMJ event, we will also be opening the door to a limited number of CMJ badge holders, but as space is limited you'd be wise to arrive early to ensure entry.

NEON GOLD ROOM
04:00pm: The Good Natured (London) // MP3: "Your Body Is A Machine"
05:00pm: Body Language (Brooklyn) // MP3: "Huffy Ten Speed"
06:00pm: Samuel (Manhattan) // MP3: "I Heart NY" (Remix ft. Joell Ortiz)
07:00pm: Spark (London) // MP3: "Shut Out The Moon" (Monsieur Adi Remix)
08:00pm: Emil & Friends (Brooklyn) // MP3: "Sleepyhead"
09:00pm: Brahms (Brooklyn) // MP3: "Subtext Is Deadly"
10:00pm: Fenech-Soler (London) // MP3: "Lies"
11:00pm: The Sound of Arrows (Stockholm) // MP3: "M.A.G.I.C."
12:00am: Penguin Prison (Harlem) // MP3: "Worse It Gets" (Starsmith Remix)
01:00am: The Knocks (Manhattan) // MP3: "Make It Better"

CHESS CLUB ROOM
03:30pm: Santah (Chicago) // MP3: "No Other Women"
04:30pm: Savoir Adore (Brooklyn) // MP3: "Bodies"
05:30pm: Alex Winston (Detroit) // MP3: "Medicine"
06:30pm: Ava Luna (Brooklyn) // MP3: "Clips"
07:30pm: Oberhofer (Brooklyn) // MP3: "Away Frm U"
08:30pm: Devin Therriault (Brooklyn) // MP3: "I Don't Think I"
09:30pm: 1, 2, 3 (Pittsburgh) // MP3: "Confetti"
10:30pm: Grouplove (Los Angeles) // MP3: "Colours"
11:30pm: The Postelles (Manhattan) // MP3: "123 Stop"

Once again tickets are $12 (BARGAIN) and available online HERE. There's also a Facebook event page up over here, and you can stay up to date on all further updates via our official Neon Gold Records twitter feed here, which to be honest you should have probably already been following anyway.

WOKE UP IN A COLD SWEAT ON THE FLOOR.

So these guys took us completely off guard the first time we heard them, hitting us hard with one of THE most amazing tracks of the year. Offering up lush instrumental soundscapes and torn heartstrings, The Middle East combine straight up folk-rock with more ambient flourishes. Hailing from Australia and without a synth in sight (go figure), they’d split up a while before their first EP, The Recordings Of The Middle East came out, but Thank. The. Lord. they put their differences aside and brought us this incredible collection of tracks.

Full of ethereal vocals, sparse guitars and breathtaking narratives, these are fragile lullabies that make you want to fall in love, fall out, and then do it all over again. "Blood" is the most incredible, reminiscent of a more whimsical Arcade Fire it swells with xylophones and whistles, building up into a beautiful midpoint crescendo right at the heart of it. The band’s intense dynamics are right at the core of their luscious sound, and they’ve absolutely made it into our favorite new bands of the year. Heartstrings, get ready to be torn.

MP3: "Blood" - Middle East

THIS IS GOING TO BE BIG.

Correction: this is going to be bigger than big. We've teamed up with Chess Club and GreenShoelace.com to put on what we hope to be one of the biggest parties of CMJ next week when we take over Santo's Party House (our favorite NYC venue) from 3pm-10pm Friday the 23rd. Two stages, 11 bands, drink specials galore, fresh DJ's, there's quite literally nothing more you could really ask for. Be there. Advance tickets are available now for $10, or cop yours for $12 on the door. Shit is about to get REALLY real.

UPSTAIRS
5:00pm: Alessi's Ark // MP3: "Simple Man"
6:00pm: Chief // MP3: "Mighty Proud"
7:00pm: Yes Giantess // MP3: "Tuff N Stuff"
8:00pm: Local Natives // MP3: "Airplanes"
9:00pm: Theophilus London // MP3: "Sandcastles" (Black x Blue)

DOWNSTAIRS
3:30pm: (The) Tony Castles // MP3: "Pirates"
4:30pm: Darwin Deez // MP3: "Bad Day" [expired]
5:30pm: Evan Voytas // MP3: "Getting Higher"
6:30pm: Body Language // MP3: "Huffy Ten Speed"
7:30pm: Baby Monster // MP3: "Curses"
8:30pm: Boy Crisis // MP3: "Dressed To Digress" (Demo)

Presale tickets are available HERE. Don't sleep, we're expecting a serious turn out for this one.

GUESS WHAT.

We're way busy packing for our first ever Glastonbury, but before we jet off for the weekend we had to hook you up with the amazing new video that's just come through for Marina & The Diamonds' "I Am Not A Robot". Directed by Dazed & Confused founder and famed London photographer Rankin, it's hands down one of the best videos we've seen in ages and one of the more special things we've ever been involved with. We were on set for a portion of the grueling 16 hour shoot (which involved three full body paint jobs) and it was obvious this was going to be pure magic, but the video turned out even more beautifully than we could have ever imagined. Truly a work of art.

Out on Neon Gold this past Monday, "Robot" is the lead single from The Crown Jewels EP, which is still available for purchase from the Neon Gold Shop and Puregroove as well as on iTunes UK. As per usual it comes backed by a delicately assembled remix package, one of the highlights of which is the incredible mix from The Aspirins For My Children. NME's named the remix their #1 Must Hear track in this week's issue and they're pretty much spot on there: this shit has massive trance stabs, high drama strings, actual robots and just about anything else you could possibly ask for. Between this and his immense destruction of "Obsessions", we're starting to feel like a full-fledged Aspirins/Marina EP is something that needs to happen... we're not making any promises though.

MP3: "I Am Not A Robot" (Aspirins For My Children Remix) - Marina & The Diamonds

That's all for now, off to Glastonbury tomorrow. We'll be back in action next week (with a new single announcement, no less) provided we survive the next four days. Holler at us if you're headed down and if you're not be sure to keep it locked on our twitter for drunken updates on how much fucking fun we're having. We'll be spending most of our time kicking it the Chess Club-curated stage at the Departure Lounge, where Neon Gold favorites and Chess Club all-stars Ex-Lovers, Mumford & Sons, Kurran & The Wolfnotes and many more will be awing the masses all weekend. Check out the full line up our Chess Club dudes have put together HERE. Can't wait, y'all.

// Rankin & Chris //

TAUNTING GESTURES.

Last February saw Local Natives emerge from SXSW as the toast of the festival and thus one of the hottest new acts around, while the three tracks on offer on their myspace had the blogs abuzz and A&Rs on both sides of the pond scrambling for their checkbooks. Things have settled down a bit in recent months as fans eagerly await more material from the band, but having wrangled ourselves a copy of the already completed debut record Local Natives are shopping to labels we can assure you the wait is worth it. Proof arrives in "Sun Hands", which will be finding it's way onto the shelves of all good record stores next month when our top bros at Chess Club make it the latest in their long line of phenomenal releases. A longtime live favorite, "Sun Hands" finds the Silverlake outfit at their most primal, all Yeasayer shouts and immense, visceral instrumentation as the track erupts in an explosive middle 8 before returning to the ethereal harmonies the band have made their calling card and easing to a peaceful conclusion.

MP3: "Sun Hands" - Local Natives

A BIRTHDAY PARTY.

Hot on the heels of our Great Escape blowout (which was AMAZING, by the way) we've got another big one lined up for this week in London. Their last show before returning home to the United States of Awesome, Yes Giantess are headlining this one with support from UK up-and-comers Flashguns and Egyptian Hip Hop, the latter of whom will be making their London live debut.

In addition to all the live action we've got an all-star line up of the DJs, with live sets from Wonky Pop, Chess Club, Transparent, Jam, Phresh Sex and Blue Flowers. And since it's celebrating the 21st birthday of the lady half of Neon Gold, this one's going to be recession-friendly with free entry and drinks specials galore. Bring your party pants and everyone you've ever met. Yes mate.



In other Yes Giantess news, "Tuff N Stuff" will be the lead track on Sisters, an amazing new compilation coming out on fresh to death French label Sister Phunk next month. For anyone who may have somehow forgotten, "Tuff" is one of the absolute biggest tunes of the last 12 months and a big reason our Boston dudes are sitting pretty as one of the hottest unsigned bands on the block. Here's a quick refresher for anyone looking for a good track with which to blow out their speakers this summer.

MP3: "Tuff N Stuff" - Yes Giantess

NEON GOLD TAKEOVER AT THE GREAT ESCAPE.

Lock up your daughters and put the drinks on ice, Neon Gold is coming to the UK. Next week sees us shipping off to London for the summer where we'll be keeping it real DJing club nights, throwing parties and continuing to release records by some of our favorite new bands. We're really stepping up our game in the months to come with just under ten releases lined up between now and autumn and a monthly club night in the works in London, and it all kicks off next week in Brighton at the annual Great Escape festival. The Great Escape has been one of the highlights of the summer for us in recent years, so we're honored to be throwing the afterparty at the Ocean Rooms late night on Saturday. Neon Gold rising stars Wolf Gang (making their live debut) and Yes Giantess will be doing their thing live with DJ support from Ellie Goulding beatmaker Starsmith, London superstars Chess Club and of course our very own Neon Gold Beat Company. Let's rage.

MP3: "Tuff N Stuff" - Yes Giantess

We suppose this is also as good a time as any to introduce you to our new favorite band and forthcoming release, Wolf Gang. Wolf Gang is the brainchild of multi-instrumentalist Max McElligott, who's gone and crafted some of the most timeless pop gems you'll hear in this or any other year and is easily one of the most gifted talents we've ever had the pleasure of working with. Proudly wearing a love for pop greats like Peter Gabriel and Talking Heads on their sleeve, the demos put forth are some of the most promising we've ever heard, their rough charm and classic pop feel converging to make them some of the most exciting tracks we've heard this year. The single we'll be releasing in late June remains under wraps for now, but go ahead and introduce yourself with "Nightflying" and see why the sky is truly the limit for this London newcomer.

MP3: "Nightflying" (Demo) - Wolf Gang

// Cristiana Crouceiro //

UNSPEAK ALL THE WORDS YOU EVER SPOKE.

It's a beautiful-ass day in the neighborhood and Wave Machines done hooked it up with the perfect soundtrack. The Liverpool quartet have been kicking it for a minute now - their Chess Club debut "I Go I Go I Go" was one of the elite tracks of last spring - but they somehow seem to remain criminally underrated. They were one of the best bands we saw at SXSW and the breezy lo-fi disco of "Keep The Lights On", the lead single off their forthcoming debut LP Wave If You're Really There, just might be their finest work to date. Last month we spent a groggy SXSW morning in Austin with the Chess Club bros unanimously declaring "Lights" the best song ever and while that may be a slight understatement, it shimmers and shines as one of our sonic highlights of 2009. Welcome to summer.

MP3: "Keep The Lights On" - Wave Machines

Elsewhere, Yes Giantess are celebrating the upcoming release of their debut single on Neon Gold (preorders going fast!) with a new track on their myspace. "Demons" is without a doubt the fiercest beat the guys have dropped since "Tuff N Stuff", showing off a darker new sound for the band and a taste of the amazing things to come from the Boston pop maestros.

// Scott Waterman //

THE GOLDEN GLOW OF A DISTANT CITY.

It's no secret Chess Club have the London folk scene on lock 24/7, so it should come as no surprise to find a band like Ex Lovers sporting their badge in the vinyl section of your favorite independent record store. Wistful sentiments and acoustic meanderings underpinned by playful boy-girl harmonies are the name of the game here, and while these ingredients aren't exactly groundbreaking, we're pretty smitten with the results. The band's debut single "Just A Silhouette" isn't quite breaking news (it dropped last December), but it's the exact kind of wintry pop that felt highly appropriate on our headphones as we braved the frosty abyss and navigated the snowed in ghost town that was downtown Manhattan this morning. We still can't feel our fingers but at least the soundtrack's nice.

MP3: "Just A Silhouette" - Ex Lovers

In other news, "I Am Not A Robot" is one of the more wonderful things you'll hear all week and demands your attention at the Marina & The Diamonds myspace, uh, now. Vocoder? Check. Strings? Check. Actual fucking human heartbeat? Check. New favorite band? Check.

// i.anton //

FRESH TO DEATH AND DRESSED TO DIGRESS.

Bros to the end with MGMT from their days together at Wesleyan, Boy Crisis make sexy dance music with even sexier lyrics. They might actually be the most clever lyricists in the game right now and as tracks like "Dressed To Digress" and "L'Homme" prove in spades, they're on some seriously next level shit. "Digress" is the first track out of the gates, available for free download on their MySpace for a minute now, and I'd be surprised if a properly produced version wasn't making whatever label they end up on very happy as a killer single in six months or so. In the meantime, they're debut release will be a 7" single for "L'Homme" (hear the demo on their MySpace now), out on the consistantly brilliant Chess Club imprint in November. For now, here's "Dressed To Digress", but keep an eye on this space as the new version of "L'Homme" sounds phenomenal and the Chess Club gentlemen have been very kind in servicing us with exclusives in the past...

MP3: "Dressed To Digress" - Boy Crisis

Passion Pit play their biggest show yet tonight at the Bowery Ballroom opening for/stealing thunder from French Kicks. It probably won't quite sell out, so come down, get blown away by the consuming technicolor sound of their live show and buy a 7" from us in person. Seriously, do it.

// Saul Bass //