Friday nights in NYC used to be all about The Knocks' Mr. Jpatt tearing up the decks at Antik, the highlight of which was always his immaculate blend of Passion Pit's "Sleepyhead" and The Jackson 5's "I Want You Back". Then when Xaphoon Jones moved to New York and witnessed the magic, he took it one step further and turned Jpatt's segue into a full length track, which he's been playing out around town for a minute now and finally today unveiled on his brand new mixtape Xaphoon Jones Volume 2. Basically, it's perfect. Grab it below and hit up Ill Roots for the whole tape, since it's kind of furiously brilliant.
Headed into SX there were already a few bands destined to be the talk of the town come week's end - Walk The Moon, Foster The People and James Blake all come to mind - but for us the real superstars of SXSW 2011 were Athens, Georgia's own Reptar. Their People Are Cool Y'all EP from late 2010 was already one of our absolute favorite releases of the past 12 months (honestly, it's kind of a masterpiece), but the live show is where they really bring the magic. This is furious pop music, like Isaac Brock fronting Passion Pit under the watchful eye of Animal Collective, and the controlled chaos of the live show is a beautiful sight to behold.
Anyone who didn't make it out west to Austin last week needn't look further than the BRILLIANTLY boisterous "Houseboat Babies" to see what all the fuss is about - it's the kind of track that immediately transports you back to that "one krrrAaaaAaaaAzy summer," even if yours hasn't happened yet. It's just that good. Coincidentally (or maybe not so), the plucky vocal samples that give the song it's backbone takes on a serious Mark Mothersbaugh vibe, not a million miles away from the theme song to Rugrats (from which the band take their amazing name). Those samples, paired with the exuberant call and response of "Can you feel it? / Yes I can feel it!" set the track up to be one of the biggest partystarters of 2011, the kind of invincible anthem that just makes you sigh "ahhh youth" and then dance until dawn. So yeah Reptar, we can feel it.
We know next to nothing about Black Light Dinner Party, other than that they hail from Boston and are coming correct with more of the fresh electronic pop sounds we've come to expect from the Northeast in recent years thanks to bands like Passion Pit and Dom. You can hear shades of both in their sound, with emotive vocals reminiscent of Miike Snow and a top notch production sound - West Coast beats rolling along with frosty NYC synths and lush Parisian melodies - that truly establishes them as a band to watch this year.
UPDATE: Apparently the remix we posted last week was sent to us prematurely by Sony, and Vito wanted some more time to throw some studio magic at it. That said we were still very much all about it and it topped the Hype charts in spite of its work-in-progress status, but now the real deal finished product has hit our inbox and it's bigger and better than ever. To quote Vito himself: "I hope you guys can hear the difference because for me the difference is HUGE!". We feel you Vito, we feel you.
We've been loving the sights and sounds of Australia's Gypsy & The Cat since their brilliant "Jona Vark" first slipped onto our radar about a year ago, and it's with great expectations that we eagerly anticipate the release of their debut album in early 2011. First though, comes their new single "The Piper's Song", backed by a brilliant remix from a sonically rejuvenated Aeroplane.
Since parting ways with writing partner Stephen Fasano (now recording as The Magician) and going it solo under the Aeroplane moniker, Vito De Luca sounds like he's got a renewed lease on life and you can hear it in his work. Gone are the dark, brooding nite versions that defined the Belgian duo's vaunted early output, in its place a carefree jubilance that's a whole new look and feel for Aeroplane. Sounding more like Passion Pit than the Aeroplane of old, De Luca's "Piper's Song" remix is nothing but hands-in-the-air synth exuberance, trading the dramatic intensity of his early output with Fasano for a remix that's just fucking fun. Summer's back y'all, dive in.
Last month we pulled back the curtain on our favorite track of the year and quite possibly the biggest single we've ever released, so we're pleased to announce that the Young Blood 7" from The Naked & Famous is now available for preorder from the Neon Gold Shop and our friends at Puregroove. Like Passion Pit if they fucked with guitars and had an anthem-of-a-generation like "Kids" or "Sweet Disposition" in their arsenal, "Young Blood" is a breath of fresh air, a wistful celebration of the ephemeral pleasures of youth. Built around an amazing central riff of heavily-affected guitars, the song soars on the wings of singer Alisa Xayalith's urgent vocals, their breathless innocence juxtaposed sharply against the ominous rumble of the overdriven bass that lies beneath the song's surface.
Sporting beautiful cover art courtesy of our heroes over at Special Problems (who also directed the song's flawless video) and rounded out by an epic cover of fellow New Zealand rockers The Mint Chicks' "Crazy? Yes. Dumb? No.", the release is out September 6th and we couldn't be more excited. Remixes are also on the way from The Sound of Arrows (amazing), Pink Ganter (amazing), Chiddy Bang (AMAZING) and more. We posted the original with the amazing Special Problems-directed video last month, but here's the radio edit for the completionists among you or the ADHD set who just can't quite handle the immense gravity of that drawn-out middle eight.
Things have been kind of quiet on the Penguin Prison remix front while dude's been hard at work finishing up his debut album - which y'all should be warned is sounding completely and utterly amazing - but now he's back with a fiery new remix of our beloved Neon Gold alumni Passion Pit. Putting to bed any concerns that his remix muscles might have atrophied over the past few months, the track is a hypnotizing melange of pulsating house piano, ice cold synths and chilled out female vocals, and we've got it on exclusive lockdown for you below.
Quite possibly our favorite new band of the year and architects of the essential summer anthem 2010 has been waiting for, The Naked & Famous emerge from Down Under as New Zealand's next (first?) great hope for international pop stardom. Like Passion Pit if they fucked with guitars and had an anthem-of-a-generation like "Kids" or "Sweet Disposition" in their arsenal, the song is a breath of fresh air, a wistful celebration of the ephemeral pleasures of youth. Built around an amazing central riff of heavily-affected guitars, the song soars on the wings of singer Alisa Xayalith's urgent vocals, their breathless innocence juxtaposed sharply against the ominous rumble of the overdriven bass that lies beneath the song's surface.
And as if the song itself wasn't brilliant enough, NZ's finest visual team Special Problems have directed a masterful video (viewable above) for the track - beautifully reminiscent of Levi's recent "Go Forth" campaign - all jubilant shots of young people being young interspersed with footage of the band amongst the picturesque environs of their native New Zealand. Already chart heroes back home, the band saw the self-release of "Young Blood" go straight to #1 in the NZ charts last month, holding off the likes of Katy Perry and B.o.B in the process and making them the first New Zealand band to do so in three years. Now it's time to introduce the them to the rest of the world, and with "Young Blood" locked in for a September 6th release on Neon Gold, we're honored to be the band's vessel of choice to do so. Preorder will be available soon, but for now grab the track below and lose yourself in its briliance, we hope you'll love it every bit as much as we do.
There's a synth-pop epidemic taking over Massachuesetts and we're totally down with it. Carrying the torch lit by former Neon Gold alumni Passion Pit and Yes Giantess, Worcester newcomer Dom threatens to outshine both of them with his debut Sun Bronzed Greek Gods EP, out on Burning Mill Records next month. The whole thing is nothing short of amazing, but it's lead track "Living In America" that's dominating our stereo as one of the absolute best tracks we've heard all year. It basically sounds like Fear of Tigers producing that first Passion Pit EP, which as you can imagine is pretty much the best thing ever. Dom has completely and utterly restored our faith in new music, this shit is MAGIC.
Now that Passion Pit is kind of cruising on its own steam, its members have found time to balance touring obligations with a number of side projects. Nate's still rocking shit as Shuttle and will have his debut album out on Ninja Tune before the year is out, Jeff and Ayad are taking over the Ableton DJ circuit as the Wet Bandits (catch them crushing Miami if you're at WMC this weekend), and Ian's recording with his girlfriend Sofia Degli Alessandri under the moniker Aislyn. The latter have just released their self-titled debut EP (available on iTunes here), but it's their otherworldly remix of our dear friends Freelance Whales' "Generator ^ First Floor" that we can't stop playing this week. Subverting the anthemic energy of the original into a more dreamy and downbeat affair, it's a refreshing take on one of our favorite songs of the year and well worth your hard-earned bandwith. Enjoy.
Oh man, this is so so good. Coming out of absolutely nowhere are Think About Life with what is easily one of the most amazing singles of the year in "Havin' My Baby". It's like a fucking spiritual awakening, all the best parts of TV On The Radio and the chipmunk soul of Graduation-era Kanye West, thanks to frontman Martin Cesar's urgent falsetto and the best use of a sample in indie pop since Mike Angelakos first hooked the world with that infectious Mary O'Hara sample in "Sleepyhead". Seriously, this shit is so good it hurts. HAVIN MA BABIE.
When we last checked in with Chiddy Bang, they were having one of the biggest coming out parties of the year with their massive remix of MGMT's "Kids" lighting up the blogs and turning all kinds of heads in the music industry. Now their back with a slightly refined line up and a fresh debut mixtape for the masses, The Swelly Express, sampling the likes of Passion Pit, Ratatat and Sufjan Stevens alongside older favorites like "Fresh Like Us" and "Kids". It's the Sufjan jam we're most smitten with though, as Chiddy beatsmith Xaphoon Jones takes "Chicago" and turns it on its head, reworking it into one of the years illest mixtape jams. "All Things Go" is available for individual download below, or you can cop the full mixtape here.
There's been noshortage of Aussie love in these pages of late, but Tim & Jean have just rolled up without warning brandishing a massive slice of blissed-out synth-pop that warrants even more Oz-related gushing. Taking the best parts of Passion Pit and Yes Giantess and mixing them up with a healthy does of 90's boy band nostalgia, "Come Around" is a technicolor blast of late-summer euphoria that's guaranteed to put a smile on your face, even as the days roll on towards the inevitable gray of winter. And when you keep in mind dudes are but 18 and 15 years of age (respectively) it becomes clear just how exciting Tim & Jean really are. Thanks to Hyperbole for the tip.
Our latest single on Neon Gold comes courtesy of Australia's favourite son Gotye and hits shops this week, and to celebrate the occasion we're here to drop the hotly anticipated Passion Pit remix of the stellar A-side, "Learnalilgivinanlovin". Keeping the throwback guitar and drums of the original intact, Passion Pit take the blueprint laid down by Gotye and dress it up in all manner of synth riffs and washes in keeping with their signature electronic aesthetic. If you haven't already gotten your preorder on from the Neon Gold Shop or Puregroove, you better get a-steppin' as a record this special doesn't tend to sit around on the shelves for long. And fear not Australia, we've got your back and are working to get this bad boy in your record shops as soon as possible.
As previously professed, Gotye is one of our favorite artists of all time and one of the reasons we're even messing about in this whole music biz thing in the first place. Thus, we're deeply honored to be releasing a very special, very limited edition 7" run of his smash hit "Learnalilgivinanlovin" that will step out as his first ever physical release in the US. The track's already been released in other territories but still has nowhere near the exposure it deserves, so sweetening the deal for our international customers is a brilliant remix from Passion Pit, whose debut 7" single "Sleepyhead"/"Better Things" was the first record ever to brandish the Neon Gold logo on its sleeve. And like our first ever release, this record also features gorgeous artwork from the brilliant FRAUGRAU, Germany's best kept secret when it comes to stunningly unique design work.
"Learnalilgivinanlovin" exudes a vibrant versatility and comes together like a classic Motown hit produced with Phil Spector's widescreen sunshine visors on, an ebullient blend of racing drums, triumphant horns, and the sweetest soul falsetto you've never heard. A huge summer anthem in his adopted home of Australia, it grooves along on a timeless instrumental with a breezy melody that's the perfect soundtrack to the classic urban summer we've been dreaming of, where kids while away hot afternoons chasing the ice cream truck down the street and dancing around in the cool relief of fire hydrant showers. It's not too late to give up hope on that elusive summer dream, and you can preorder the single from the Neon Gold Shop or Puregroove before it's August 17th release. Limited to only 300 copies worldwide, act now before it's too late.
Neon Gold's favourite son Starsmith (née Fin Dow-Smith) has been tearing it up all year, from his flawless work with the magnificent Ellie Goulding to his consistently brilliant remixes for the likes of Marina & The Diamonds and Little Boots, and he's straight up the best new pop producer in the game as far as we're concerned. Thus, we're thrilled to be premiering his debut minimix right here on Neon Gold, a five minute mash up of the biggest jams of the past, present and future. Check the tracklist below, get your download on and turn up your speakers - this exclusive beauty is here to rock your summer.
But perhaps even more exciting is Starsmith's latest collaboration with Ms. Goulding, born from our persistent suggestions that they should cover our first ever release on Neon Gold, Passion Pit's instant blog classic "Sleepyhead". Fin's back at it again on production/remix duties and makes his vocal debut on backing vox, while Ellie takes it away on lead vocals and offers a beautiful take on Michael Angelakos' masterful original. Her voice suits the track perfectly - especially her take on the spellbinding vocal sample that underlies the original - and Starsmith's remix work is brilliant as always, so it should come as no surprise that the results are every bit as wonderful as you'd expect. Our gift to you. Enjoy.
And so the relentless onslaught of summer releases continues. Not unlike previous Neon Gold all-stars Passion Pit and Yes Giantess, the story of Wolf Gang began with Max McElligott penning massive pop anthems in the solitary confines of his bedroom. Having since formed a band around him, he's now set to take his craft to the world stage, and "Pieces of You" is the debut single before they no doubt become a global pop machine in the months to come. Fusing everything from the grooves of David Byrne to the widescreen soundscapes of Arcade Fire and the timeless pop of Smokey Robinson, "Pieces" is a pastiche of influences plucked from bygone eras and beautifully reimagined in a modern context. With a chorus that descends from the heavens and just erupts like an avalanche of sound and emotion, it's one of our favorite tracks of the year and we're thrilled to be bringing it into the world on Neon Gold. MP3:"Pieces of You" - Wolf Gang
On the flipside, "The Kill" hits a more ominous and foreboding note, as hospital synths swoon and swirl across the mix and McElligott - who also designed the artwork for the record - sings with a dark urgency reflective of the current global crisis at hand. And as you've probably come to expect by now, we've got a shit ton of hot remixes coming through from the liks of Yes Giantess, We Have Band and Disco Bloodbath, plus many more. Preorder is available now from the Neon Gold Shop for US customers or from Puregroove for our International customers. As per usual, only 500 copies available worldwide so don't sleep.
We've mentioned Blue Flowers - the legenedary West London club night turned singles labe - before in these pages, and we're over the moon to announce our upcoming collaboration with them as they seek to launch the Blue Flowers brand in NYC. The original night quickly became West London's premier club night and saw everyone from Jamie T and Noah & The Whale to Adele and Laura Marling cutting their teeth on its hallowed stage, and now the NYC night promises to showcase the best new talent from both sides of the Atlantic. Launching June 20th with Neon Gold favorites The Maccabees headlining and support from Miike Snow and Hatcham Social, their new venture is already off to a hugely promising start. Not only has Music Hall of Williamsburg, New York's best large-scale venue, signed on to host the proceedings, but we'll also be rocking the Neon Gold room downstairs all night long with an elite crop of DJ's dropping the jams until 3 AM. Olmec and Body Language will be getting things started early, with Friends With Benefits and Shuttle (formerly Etan) keeping things moving until the early hours. Get ready NYC.
The nicest weather we've ever experienced in London, it's been a glorious weekend of Pimm's in the garden, dining al fresco and soaking up cosmic rays all about town. It's the perfect time, then, to revisit our most listened to summer anthem of last year, "Sleepyhead", through Run Toto Run's magical interpretation of the amazing Passion Pit original and our first ever release here at Neon Gold. Run Toto Run swap Michael Angelakos' helium falsetto for frontwoman Rachael Kichenside's honey-throated coo and offer a brilliant violin arrangement in the stead of the original's synthesizer outburst on the chorus, delivering perhaps the most winning version of "Sleepyhead" we've heard yet.
Leaving the technicolor dancefloors of "Sleepyhead" and "The Reeling" behind, "Moth's Wings" ebbs and flows as one of Passion Pit's most impressive works to date. A step in a more mature direction for the band, "Moth's Wings" displays a more restrained vocal from Michael Angelakos in place of the off-the-wall shrieks and wails found on Chunk of Change (not that we didn't love those, mind you). Leading in with ephemeral dulcimer loops and pristine keys, oceansized synths rise up and wash across the mix as the song shimmers and flutters like the diamond rings and moths wings referenced within. It's perhaps the group's most timeless pop offering to date and a resounding wake up call for anyone hastily rushing to cast aside Passion Pit as nothing more than another indie dance act. Haters beware, Manners is the real deal.
To be perfectly honest, we don't love "The Reeling", the lead single off of Passion Pit's forthcoming Manners, but that's really only because we've been spoiled by the rest of the tracks compiled on their amazing debut full length. The recently unveiled video, on the other hand, is most definitely something to write home about. Perhaps the finest music video we've seen all year, the clip was directed by the Humble collective and filmed at the Delancey, also known as the LES home to our infamous (not really) Neon Gold parties. The video finds the band flanked by girls way too hot for them to feasibly be hanging out with and immersed in a world of distressed, animated paper as Michael belts out the chorus of his most vulnerable anthem from behind a mask of paper mache and torn up gig flyers. Deep, bro.
Regardless of your stance on "The Reeling" you should probably go ahead and start getting extremely excited about the otherworldly pleasures in store for you on their debut LP, out on Frenchkiss Records and Columbia UK next month. Let's just put it this way, if "Little Secrets" doesn't light up the airwaves as this summer's "Electric Feel", then frankly we don't know what will. Here's a hot-shit remix the dudes dropped for touring pals Ra Ra Riot to ease the wait.
Friday nights in NYC used to be all about The Knocks' Mr. Jpatt tearing up the decks at Antik, the highlight of which was always his immaculate blend of Passion Pit's "Sleepyhead" and The Jackson 5's "I Want You Back". Then when Xaphoon Jones moved to New York and witnessed the magic, he took it one step further and turned Jpatt's segue into a full length track, which he's been playing out around town for a minute now and finally today unveiled on his brand new mixtape Xaphoon Jones Volume 2. Basically, it's perfect. Grab it below and hit up Ill Roots for the whole tape, since it's kind of furiously brilliant.
