Various...

Even more cupboard cleaning.

US indie pop piece Brown Recluse [sings] are currently working on their debut album, which should hopefully be out early 2010 on Slumberland Records. To stir up some interest a 4 track (12” and digital) EP named The Soft Skin EP will be put out on September 8. Preview track Contour and Context immediately raised my eyebrows the first time I gave it listen, being such a glorious catchy pop tune with charming 60’s influences. May the rest of the stuff be equally great!
+ Contour and Context

Not a day without some Northern Portrait news. Stefan is interviewed by Romanian (?) blog/online magazine ZME music (in English).

Swedish folkpop combo Gustav and The Seasick Sailors are giving away their recent single Sadie Says as a free download. Technically challenged as I am, I couldn’t make the download work, so instead the band was so kind to mail the track in my direction along with the b-side/bonus track/whatever named 6 am. And two excellent tracks they are. The somewhat Bright Eyes inspired 6 am is beautiful, melancholic with some depressing feel to it, though the lousy speakers at work, makes it impossible to hear whether or not the lyrics actually verifies this. Sadie Says is pretty much the opposite, being a more cheerful and up-tempo tune with a chorus that you could easily find yourself humming after a few listens. Both tracks can be found on the new edition of the band’s Brilliant Hands album.
+ Sadie Says
+ 6 am

The number of Twitter followers has now reached 273 and I’ve actually started enjoying this whole tweeting and reading tweets thing!

David Gray’s Babylon will forever be one of my favorite songs, but cannot say that I’m all that excited about his new single Fugitive (stream it at Myspace).