Slept On: Music: October 29, 2009.

I haven't posted forever...mostly because I've been getting new music like CRAZY, and have been trying to sort through it all.  If you don't know these bands, you should.  All 3 of these albums have been playing non-stop on my iPod.  Oh, and the 'favorite songs' are clickable links to the youtube versions. Enjoy!

The XX-XX.

A haunting and masterful use of space lets this album flourish with smooth, simplistic sounds, often emphasized by understated, yet always present bass.  There is no genre for this type of music, altho it is reminiscient of Radiohead or Interpol.  The songs are extremely simple, but  have a somewhat futuristic sound. They generally sing about youth and sex, and it works really, really well.  This album was made by 4, 20 year old Brits, and well, I'm impressed.
My Favorite Songs: 'Crystalised' and 'Infinity'.

Built To Spill-There is No Enemy.

This long-favorite indie band has been an inspiration for many of indie music's biggest bands from recent memory (Modest Mouse, The Killers, Death cab, etc.), but their sound remains unique and captivating.  This cd is chocked full of great guitar work and interesting lyrics.  'Life is a Dream' really stands out to me, for both its awesome writing, and its beautiful instrumentals (check out the SOLO at around 3 minutes in!).  Check this band out, now!
My Favorite Songs: 'Life is a Dream' and 'Nowhere Lullaby'

Passion Pit-Manners.

Manners is a unique CD in that it wasn't so much the result of trying to make a great CD, as it was a result of wanting to make a gift for the lead singer's girlfriend.

According to wikipedia:
"Passion Pit formed in late 2007. Originally, Michael Angelakos had started "Passion Pit"   as a project in order to write a few songs for his girlfriend as a Valentine's Day present. Angelakos lived in Buffalo, NY, where his music was first heard."

Regardless of their motive for making it, Passion Pit has made a solid debut CD, which sounds (in ways) like another great 2009 debut, MGMT's excellent album, Oracular Spectacular.  However, Passion Pit has their own style.  Most of these songs are epic in scope, and they have their own unique elements that distinguish them from bands within their 'genre' (which I guess I would call electro-pop, although I don't think that does the genre justice). I don't have much else to say other than this CD is pretty amazing...the level of technical detail combined with the singer's high-register voice result in awesome musical textures and some great songs.
My Favorite Songs: 'The Reeling' and 'Sleepyhead'.
[Sleepyhead is their single, one of the best songs on the album, and one of my favorite songs of the year.]




That's all for this post, I have a LOT more recommendations coming soon, so keep checking back!