an internet pop thing from philadelphia

Heathers "Teenage Clothes"

Heathers
Teenage Clothes

The first track unveiled by new-ish-ish LA popkids Heathers last week is a top-shelf jangler, with just enough west coast fuzz around the edges that you could probably even convince your wavvves coast friends to take it for a spin. It sounds like Coca-Colas (with whiskey? Maybe. I know Michael would approve.) and swimming pools, or maybe an endless loop of that moment on the log plume where you hit the water at the bottom of the first big drop. And this is all amidst an 18 degree wind chill. I can only imagine how great this will sound when it’s not soundtracking an east coast Winter. I give it 3 out of 4 Zac Efrons.

Download it for free on bandcamp!

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Joanna Gruesome "Do You Really Wanna Know Why Yr Still In Love With Me?"

Joanna Gruesome
Do You Really Wanna Know Why Yr Still In Love With Me?

Joanna Gruesome might be one of my favorite bands going right now—and probably the most exciting. If there’s any justice, when their debut LP finally hits later this year it’s going to drop like a fuzz bomb of pop brillance, knocking down everything in its path. The two tracks on their recent Happy Happy Birthday To Me-released 7” are not only indicative of their wide-eyed energy and ability to write a fine hook, but also—and most importantly—that they aren’t afraid to kick you in the face and spit on your shoes. Just wait for “Secret Surprise” and you’ll really get it.

But for now we’ve got “Do You Really Wanna Know Why Yr Still In Love With Me?”: A song as impressive in its shimmering melodic drive and sheer length of title as Airport Girl’s indiepop classic “The Foolishness That We Create Through Love Is The Closest We Come To Greatness”. But where Airport Girl’s ode to life-affirming love runs on wonderfully blind optimism, you get the sense that JGro aren’t quite that naive. Love cuts, folks.

Get it from Happy Happy Birthday To Me or yr favorite distro.

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Catnaps “Novelty” Video

The new winter formal-themed music video from Philadelphia’s Catnaps premiered today and it’s kind of perfect. It’s almost exactly how I would have pictured “Novelty”—my favorite track from their new Shuteye EP—to take visual shape. It’s shimmering, romantic, and awkward; just like the song. You can grab the EP for “name your own price” over at bandcamp, but be a doll and toss them a few bucks!

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Attention everyone interested in hearing one of best records that will be released this year: Girls Names’ brillllllllllllliant sophomore LP The New Life is streaming in full today!  There’s been a lot of talk about The New Life feeling very bleak and grey, but bleak would simply be an understatement; this record is downright post-apocalyptic. That chaotic and angular guitar outro on “The Olympia” (which has quickly become one of the best songs these ears have heard this year) doesn’t merely cull up images of a cold walk down barren streets, but brings about true visions of doom—burnings cars and makeshift roadblocks, screams off in the distance, and burning eyes from the thick fog of smoke in the air. The New Life is going to be real tough to beat. We’ll see how this one works in the Summer, though. Might have to shelve it then. I feel like that’s how they’d want it anyway.

Attention everyone interested in hearing one of best records that will be released this year: Girls Names’ brillllllllllllliant sophomore LP The New Life is streaming in full today! 

There’s been a lot of talk about The New Life feeling very bleak and grey, but bleak would simply be an understatement; this record is downright post-apocalyptic. That chaotic and angular guitar outro on “The Olympia” (which has quickly become one of the best songs these ears have heard this year) doesn’t merely cull up images of a cold walk down barren streets, but brings about true visions of doom—burnings cars and makeshift roadblocks, screams off in the distance, and burning eyes from the thick fog of smoke in the air. The New Life is going to be real tough to beat. We’ll see how this one works in the Summer, though. Might have to shelve it then. I feel like that’s how they’d want it anyway.

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Love Parade “Life”

After many years of listening, I’ve not-so-surprisingly come to the conclusion that Love Parade were incapable of writing a mediocre song. I’m sure there are long-buried boxes somewhere with a few cassettes of duds on them, but those are no matter, because the band’s self-released ‘Past Crimes’ comp (collecting their singles on A Turntable Friend, as well as demos, etc) from 1991 is wall-to-wall gems. The guitar jangle is perpetually dreamy, but it’s Graeme Elston’s vocals and lyrics that make songs like “Life” still sound perfect 20+ years later.

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Joanna Gruesome “Secret Surprise” (Live)

You want me so much you can’t breath
I dream of pulling out your teeth!

Joanna Gruesome are fucking great and I won’t hear otherwise. I can’t wait to hear this song recorded on their full-length—due out later this year on Fortuna POP!

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Attn!

The download link for the February Mix should working just fine now. If you have any trouble with it or anything else, please message me so I can try to figure out what is going on! Thanks! Enjoy the mix!

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A Monthly Mix: February 2013!

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And we’re back! Since January ended up being a bit of a wash (sometimes does depending on when I get around my ‘end of the year’ list/mix posting), February’s mix will bring us into 2013—and how it does! Notable new ones from Chastity Belt, Still Corners, Haiku Salut, Blooper, and Bent Shapes! Keep an eye on all five this year! Mixed in around those are some old favorites (can’t very well make a February mix without Lily’s “February Fourteenth”, can you?) and winter-appropriate international pop hits! I hope it brightens your FEB and a very belated happy new year to all you popkids out there!

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I am currently fixing some server issues and as a result, the download link may be broken for a period of time. I’ll update when everything is squared way! Sorry!

The download link should be working fine now!

DOWNLOAD! (83mb, .zip)

Tracklist:

  1. The Raw Herbs “The Storm”
  2. Chastity Belt “Seattle Party”
  3. The Airfields “Quiet Nights In June”
  4. Pia Fraus “Feeling Is New”
  5. Still Corners “Heart of Fools”
  6. Stereolab “The Nth Degrees”
  7. Haiku Salut “Leaf Stricken”
  8. Lilys “February Fourteenth”
  9. Javelins “Geography of Me”
  10. Blooper “Shaky”
  11. Love Parade “Can’t Buy Me Love”
  12. Blueboy “Sea Horses” (Live)
  13. Bent Shapes “Bites and Scratches”
  14. Razorcuts “Mary Day”
  15. My Favorite “Go Kid Go” (7” Version)
  16. Small Factory “Sensible”

Vaaaaaaalentiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiine!

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Great news of the day: Morr Music are reissuing the first two Dump albums!!! They’re both be pressed on vinyl for the first time ever! Superpowerless will be out in March, followed by I Can Hear Music in April! YAY!

Great news of the day: Morr Music are reissuing the first two Dump albums!!! They’re both be pressed on vinyl for the first time ever! Superpowerless will be out in March, followed by I Can Hear Music in April! YAY!

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