9 Jun 2014
Free Download Roundup - Pez Headz / Coloured Clocks / Southern Boutique
I've found soooo much great new free stuff for you for this month's free download roundup that I'm having to split the feature into multiple parts to ensure that I don't give you too much goodness to take in at once. Without further googoo gajoob, check out these beauties:
Pez Headz "Mr. Something"
I'm a sucker for a piece of memorable sleeve art, and "Mr Something" pulls the neat trick of sounding exactly like I hoped it would from the cover - a rare case of being able to judge a book by its cover. California based Pez Headz combine some nice, vintage sounding U.K post-punk moves with groovadelic organwork and reverb-laden surf guitar in a manner that occasionally suggests The Cure's "Three Imaginary Boys" reimagined at half speed by an original Nuggets era garage psych band. Quite an odd mixture, but extremely effective, with the wobbly organ and treated vocals adding a layer of mystery that makes everything sound just a little disconcerting and spooky.
Fans of Holy Wave will probably like this one a lot. We like it a whole lot, especially when the bass guitar goes all Hooky.
Available as a free download direct from the band's Bandcamp page here:
Coloured Clocks "All Is Round"
"All is Round" is a pretty phenomenal piece of bedroom psych pop that shows more sonic invention than most bands can muster in a fully equipped studio - and James Wallace does this all by himself. Over the course of twenty tracks, interest should at some point lag, but Wallace's songwriting smarts and production and arrangement skills ensure that there's never a dull moment, with an impressive wall of sound that suggests Tame Impala with a baroque pop fixation. Special mention should also be made of Wallace's occasional guitar solos which have the lyrical quality of David Gilmour with a more spontaneous edge. Try "Killing Time", "Irrational II" or "It's Getting so Close" for an idea of the memorable songwriting on display here.
Seriously inventive and impressive.
"All Is Round" is a free download from the Coloured Clocks Bandcamp page here:
Southern Boutique "Growing Old / Undercurrent" "Rabbit Trails / Don't Be Yourself (Cowboy Song Pt. 2"
Not one, but two great singles from this excellent Austin, Texas psychedelic pop combo with an inventive, lo-fi aesthetic that adheres closer to something from the Elephant 6 roster than the reverb-laden, garage psych that Austin is renowned for.
No idea where these guys sprang from, but I'm assuming there's quite a background behind them as these are not the tentative first steps you'd normally hear on a set of debut tracks.
"Rabbit Trails" is particularly assured, with a stonking, rhythmic arrangement that puts the bomp in the bomp, bomp, bomp while accentuating a killer melody. "Don't Be Yourself" on the other hand features memorably arranged harmony vocals that go all wiggy in the best tradition of the likes of "Good Vibrations" - as Beach Boy tributes go this is a particular winner, and undoubtedly more psychedelic than anything Wilson and co. ever conjured without losing the edge of melancholy that invited so many of Brian's tracks into our hearts. Yup, pretty damn fine.
Both available on a name your own price starting at $0 basis from their Bandcamp page here.
More free stuff to come soon!
Check out previous free download roundups here and here.
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Don't Be Yourself (Cowboy Song Pt. 2) was released previously by Tiger Waves, the previous band for these guys: https://soundcloud.com/j_mar34/dont-be-yourself-cowboy-song
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