American Wrestlers - Give Up

| Keith
If I take my time they’ll bury me alive

"Give Up", the first single off American Wrestler's latest, Goodbye Terrible Youth, is an upbeat, sort of summer-meets-fall ditty where catchy guitars and distorted vocals interrupt, in a good way, an otherwise classic shoegazer. It's sort of indicative of the rest of the album; a nicely-crafted mellow-except-when-your-chair-dancing rock affair that sounds familiar in a way I can't really put my finger on. If you're looking for a chill (except when it's upbeat) backdrop to wind up your week, give it a listen.

RIYL: Library Voices, Nada Surf, The Posies, Vampire Weekend

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OK Go - Upside Down & Inside Out

| Kerri
Upside down and inside out
And you can feel it
Upside down and inside out
And you can feel it, feel it
Don't know where your eyes are
But they're not doin' what you said
Don't know where your mind is baby
But you're better off without it

Inside down and upside out
And you can feel it
Don't stop
Can't stop
It's like an airplane goin' down
I wish I had said the things you thought that I had said
Gravity's just a habit that you're really sure you can't break
So when you met the new you
Were you scared?
Were you cold?
Were you kind?
Yeah when you met the new you
Did someone die inside?

OK Go is a quirky, artsy, nerdy, smart, indie (despite two albums earlier on with a major label, and MANY sponsored videos) rock band. I like their lyrics and sound, but it is their amazing one-take videos that remind me to listen. Thursday they released their latest, for "The One Moment": a fun, colorful, mathematically designed feat of slowing down 4.2 perfectly choreographed seconds to fit a four minute song. We spent a good chunk of time, while our Thanksgiving pie was digesting, watching their YouTube channel and marveling. One I hadn't seen before that especially delighted me was the video for "The Writing's On the Wall". Today's Most Important Song had it's video released last February - filmed in zero gravity. They also seem to be a kind-hearted bunch, frequently diverting proceeds from a single, a performance, or a video to causes such as the homeless, Hurricane Katrina, animal shelters, and political issues (like net neutrality). I'm now, finally, convinced that I should try to see them live sometime. Hopefully they'll have a new album to tour (and create videos) for next year. 

RIYL: They Might Be Giants, Vampire Weekend, We Are Scientists, Spoon, Hot Hot Heat

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Cloud Nothings - Modern Act

| Keith
Do you know what it's like
To be out and alive?
To say you're doing alright
Yeah, you're doing just fine?
When you feel like an ocean
Coming out of a creek
Filling rivers to wait for you
Wherever you are?
When you're out and around
And all you ever see
Are people looking away?
It's nothing new to me

I think we're still a couple months away from Cloud Nothing's Life Without Sound, but tracks are slowly trickling in. My favorite of those, so far, is "Modern Life" a strong and straightforward rock anthem.

RIYL: Yuck, Japandroids, Titus Andronicus, Cymbals Eat Guitars, JEFF The Brotherhood, Beach Slang

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