Paulcore

Okay, so it really has been forever since I’ve posted and for that I sincerely apologize. I hate to do this, but here are a few updates:

1) Paulcore is finished for the semester. Unfortunately I got completely bogged down with studying for my final exams and I wasn’t able to put together a proper end-of-the-semester show which really kinda sucks, especially since I was planning on making it an ‘NYC Popfest’ show. To make up for it, I’ll make my first show of the semester next semester really really awesome instead of just alright which is likely what would’ve happened.

2) Since I am done with my final exams, I am back home in good ol’ DFW and am planning on posting at least semi-regularly. My computer has been badly infected  with a virus and just tonight my fantastic brother-in-law was able to revive and so I am back!

3) I’m currently listening to The School’s latest album Reading Too Much Into Things Like Everything. It’s quite pleasant so expect a post featuring them to come up shortly.

3) NYC Popfest starts tomorrow and I’m all kinds of jelly that I’m not there, so instead of sitting around and pouting about it I will create some posts about a few of the bands featured there starting tomorrow. I would start tonight except that I have already planned what I wish to blog about. Which brings me to the main thing I want to talk about:

The Sea Urchins!

The Sea Urchins are one of those classic Sarah Records who have too few songs released and faded into other projects much too soon. Forming in Birmingham UK in 1987, The Sea Urchins hold the distinction of being the first band to release a single on Sarah Records with their fantastic song “Pristine Christine”. I was driving around town today listening to their album Stardust when I realized how much I had under-appreciated this band. If you are just getting into indie pop, The Sea Urchins should be at the top of your essentials listening list. If you consider yourself a hardened veteran and have not listened to The Sea Urchins, you are doing something wrong.

Now here’s something you definitely won’t find coming out of other indie kids: an appearance on Real Stories of the Highway Patrol.

The Halo Bender’s are seen touring in Utah here sometime in the 1990’s. While I can’t say for certain who actually gets in trouble here, it is very easy to recognize Calvin Johnson and Doug Martsch in their appearances.

When asked about it, Doug Martsch responded

Oh…it did happen. Yeah. But I don’t really want to talk about it. But…someone got in trouble. It wasn’t me. It wasn’t Calvin. Well, Calvin got in sort of trouble for smarting off. I never saw the episode. To me it was just a dramatic, bad situation. To some people it’s funny, but to us, it was a bummer. 

Probably not the greatest moment of indie music history but still something to watch and learn from regardless.

Man, is it just me or does it feel like it’s been forever? School’s been kinda busy as of late but I have a bit of a respite for the next two weeks so let’s see if I can get a bit caught up.

The Kabeedies released their sophomore effort Soap this past February and upon my first listen it gave me a bit of a surprise. Hailing from Norwich/Woodbridge, England, this band hosts a feverish energy set apart by more worldly influences not found in typical pop bands. I was honestly a bit shocked to learn these guys were European and not from South Africa. Jangly guitars, frantic drums, and absolute heavenly vocals tell me you can’t miss this release. Check it out here on Spotify. I cannot get enough of these guys.

Listen to this song and so much on Paulcore tomorrow from 1pm-3pm CST here.

Tender Trap, a band I consider absolutely legendary is playing at Caboose Cafe in Ramsgate, England for £5.

£5.

That’s only $7.94. I ate chicken wings that cost more than that for dinner tonight. And I’d be willing to fast for half a week to see these guys live. Meanwhile I’m here in bed watching How I Met Your Mother on Netflix. American problems I guess.

“Do You Want a Boyfriend?” comes from the group’s 2010 release Dansette Dansette and proves that since the formation of Talulah Gosh in 1986 Amelia Fletcher has never lost her charm. This album is modern indie pop gold.

So I’m currently sitting a bench outside of my class which starts in about about half an hour. Just as I’m about to lie down and take a nap, another student comes out of nowhere and sits to read the paper. All my rage.

The Besties are pretty flippin’ adorable and they’re very lucky for that because otherwise this video is incredibly awkward. This song is the opening track from their album Singer which was released way back in 2005. Singer is just about as twee as it gets and you should check it out. Sadly, the Besties called it quits in 2009 and have left no signs of a comeback.

A couch just opened up, I’m gonna go take a nap! DAMMIT SOMEONE JUST TOOK IT.

Paulcore is airing live today at 1 pm CST, listen at kanm.org for The Besties, Tullycraft, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, and so much more!

There is so much to love about Fishboy. First off, they’re from good ol’ Denton, TX (you have no idea how excited I was when I realized there was an indie pop band I loved that was relatively local), the lead singer creates completely rad comics to journalizing their tour adventures, and most importantly, they make amazing music. I realized earlier today while slaving away in the civil engineering lab (alright, it wasn’t that bad) that their most recent album Classic Creeps was easily one of my favorites of last year. It’s composed of ten songs about ten characters all of whose names being with the letter ‘A’. You can listen to the entire album and read an accompanying comic here.

I also learned recently that they are just as awesome acoustically as they are in an electric setting evidenced by the attached video. One of the best things in the world is seeing their bassist/guitarronist Ryan, one of the hairiest mans I’ve ever seen wearing cat ears. On a separate note, I’ve never been offered to play at a cat party but I hope I do before I die. It is absolutely criminal that I’ve never seen these guys play live but I hope to remedy that soon.