Hey, Lil' Chris just put up some clips from his new album! I'm delighted to hear that his sound has stayed pretty consistent as he's grown up. From these teasers, I'm very excited about the release. Only Wish I Could sounds especially promising.

Flashback Friday: Belle Epoque - Bamalama



"We'll knock you down in the back street"

I just really wanted the chance to post this hilarious, surreal, creepy-ass video again today. I am fascinated by Belle Epoque, mostly because of their look (Planet of the Apes in this particular vid?) and their sound. This is, quite frankly, as scary as disco music can get. Like, seriously, if I met this woman in a dark alley I'd run for my life... especially if she was swinging that chain of hers. I mean, just look at the lyrics to this track! Today I've posted the full-length album version of this song, but if anyone has a copy of the radio edit I'd be eternally thankful! I've been addicted to this bizarre track for over a year now.

Belle Epoque - Bamalama (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Buy the album here!)

Teenager - Alone Again

"You are waiting down there for me"

In anticipation of Ladyhawke's forthcoming debut (I've been avoiding samples until I can hear the whole thing), I'm posting an excellent song from her former band/duo/sideproject thingie, called Teenager--not to be confused by the also-great french band The Teenagers. Alone Again has such a perfect, ethereal dream quality to it. It's not particularly a "number one pop hit," but it's incredibly beautiful and really gets better with each listen. And really, I think with the level of fervor going around in the blogging world, any little extra bit of Ladyhawke that we can get is completely welcome.

Teenager - Alone Again (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Buy the album here!)

Family Force 5 - Dance Or Die

"Dance for your right"

Despite starting life as a Christian band (which never sits well with me because it pretty much guarantees that a band will be devoid of any sort of edge), I was attracted through Family Force 5 because of their crazy outfits and love of synth rock. I don't like the whole album (too screamo in many tracks) but there are a few worthy songs and thankfully nothing is all God-centered. It is frustrating, though, because I feel like the group are on the cusp of being very good but there are just some things that don't work for me. Maybe with the next album? We'll see. For now, they've got Dance Or Die, which straddles the line between dance and rock the best of all the tracks on the album and is the definite 100% keeper here. I actually quite love this song.

Family Force 5 - Dance Or Die (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Buy the album here!)

Video Premiere: Black Kids - Look At Me

Yay, they're releasing my favorite song as the third single even though it's the last track on the album! Plus, the video is fanfreakingtastic. It completely resurrects my childhood in all its hyper-spastic, neon glory. I have a feeling this is going to end up being one of my favorite singles (and videos) of the year.

Grafton Primary - She Knows It

"This is what she needs and she knows it"

Grafton Primary are finally set to release their full-length debut, Eon, this Saturday in Australia. I'm very excited because I've been loving their music for awhile now. I Can Cook just gets more epic each time I listen to it. From what I've heard of the new album, including She Knows It, the band could be positioned to follow up on the promise the Killers gave with Hot Fuss. Lead singer Joshua Garden can at times be a dead-ringer for Brandon Flowers (note their similar last names?) and the band have honed their massive synthpop sound to perfection. I'm very excited to hear the results in full.

Grafton Primary - She Knows It (zshare)

(Music posted for evaluation purposes only. If you like what you hear, support the artists. Preorder the album here!)