Best New Music of Right Now (07.16.08)

In our second edition of our new weekly column of what is tearing up the stereos and iPod's of us SIS folk, Rusty gets his chance to let people know what's been kicking his ass. Spoiler alert: NO. ABE. VIGODA. *gasp!*

High Places - 03.07 - 09.07 (Thrill Jockey)

You might've seen my thoughts on their live set a few posts down when I saw them the other night, but sometimes it is records that are always the better formal introduction. The Brooklyn duo actually had their friends at eMusic release this collection of 7" singles from the title's frame earlier this year, before Thrill Jockey picked them up out of free agency and wanted to give people something to tide them over until their self titled full length in September. The seven singles on here range from paranoia ("Shared Islands"), to songs that actually had me dancing ("Head Spins"). Of the three bonus tracks that round out the disc, it's all about the alternate version of "Freaked Flight" that helps one fully realize that High Places are definitely on to something. Mary Pearson's beautiful vocals fit perfect with the schizophrenic sounds swirling from channel to channel.
Download: "Head Spins" [mp3] // [Buy Here]

Lackthereof - Your Anchor (Barsuk)

Menomena's Friend And Foe dominated my 2007, and I think that Danny Seim's side-project might just own me for the rest of the summer. On his ninth (yes, ninth - Menomena was supposed to be his side project once), Seim channels his kindred spirits in Menomena on the fantastic "Choir Practice", while making a name for himself in "Last November", a song with a chorus worthy of being used as the soundtrack to some shitty MTV program to make it that much better. But what comes as the total shock is the closing number - a cover of The National's "Fake Empire". Looking at the tracklisting, I thought, "no way", but yes way, indeed! A very intimate reading of a very intimate song. Good job, Danny boy.
Download: "Last November" [mp3] // [Buy Here]

Quiet Village - Silent Movie [K!7]

I almost had forgotten about this record until last night. Not too long ago, I curated one of my many mixes and had "Free Rider" as the opening track after some unlisted noise took up the first 30 or so seconds. Last night, I put on Silent Movie for the first time in a good while. It's a tight, well-oiled late night soundtrack. Between the production style and the samples and other noises, it sounds like it's stuck between late 60s sunny beach love stories and early 70s cops chasing bad guys scenes. Whatever the case, I like it either way. A sunny tale of cops chasing love lorn beach folk? There we go, much better.
Download: "Free Rider [mp3] // [Buy Here]

Women - Women (Flemish Eye)

I think only one word is needed to describe this musical year - and even this post - brevity. Brief and concise must be the mantra some bands are following in a year where money is tight, and gas costs more than your favorite mp3 download (seriously, each record discussed here so far clocks in at 30 minutes or less). On their debut, Alberta, Canada's Women run through 10 songs in 29:29. Where some can be longer, like the near five-minute epic "Shaking Hand," there's some questionable minutes like "January 8th". And in the middle of all this, there's "Group Transport Hall". In what has to be the best 71 seconds of 2008, the band summons a song that Guided By Voices would've written if they stayed the course of Alien Lanes. Verse, chorus, bridge, verse, chorus, bridge, end scene. Acoustic guitars, call and response, I'm gonna play this song for the 43rd time now.
Download: "Group Transport Hall" [mp3] // [Buy Here]