Blog Posts by Dave DiMartino

One of this year’s most tasteful and unexpected pleasures is surely Brightest Darkest Day, the debut album from PYYRAMIDS--whose appearance at this year’s South By Southwest conference proved them to be an equally captivating live band.

A collaborative effort between OK Go bassist Tim Nordwind and He Say, She Say singer Drea Smith, PYYRAMIDs have been described by some as “Billie Holiday fronting the Smiths”—which, as outrageous as that might sound, is not stylistically off the mark. The same energies the latter band is famed for providing permeate many of the textures of Brightest Darkest Day—not to mention some of the more tasteful, upbeat groups to be had on the 4AD Records roster of the late ‘90s—but all is capped with the rich and soothing vocals of Smith, who provides a textural depth that makes the album a very worthy candidate for repeated listening.

In stripped-down acoustic setting, PYRRAMIDS are equally appealing, as you’ll discover here in this great session Y! Music captured in our Austin headquarters last month. Most notable might have been their mesmerizing performance of “Paper Doll”-- which is gorgeous here and, sonically, considerably more refined than the pounding and appealing version to be found on Brightest Darkest Day, which we strongly suggest you also check out.

If the best part of the yearly SXSW experience is finding a new and worthwhile band you’ve never heard before, we think PYYRAMIDS are high on the list of new bands to watch out for. Just give them a listen.

One of the most energetic, literate and enthusiastic performers currently out there, Frank Turner—who for better or worse is generally described as a “folk/punk singer songwriter”—livened up Y! Music headquarters at South By Southwest this year with a rousing set of performances that captivated the entire room.

Turner, whose new album Tape Deck Heart is due later this month, has amassed a large international audience with his steady flow of inspiring, politically-charged songs and very prominent live performances—the most notable of which may be his selection to play as warm-up artist for the London 2012 Olympics opening ceremony in front of 200,000 people.

The singer, signed to Xtra Mile Recordings in the UK but until recently handled by Epitaph in the States, will now see Tape Deck Heart distributed in the US by Interscope Records. Though that extended reach is unlikely to affect the quality of the songs Turner continues to write, it’s very possible his music will now be accessible to more people than ever. And as you’ll surely note by watching the performances below, that’s very good indeed.

A young Brit with a remarkably aged and soulful voice, Jamie N Commons already is building an international buzz. That his track “Lead Me Home” was recently an integral part of the Walking Dead TV show is not a small matter, nor the fact that it is the opening the track of that popular show’s newly released soundtrack. But between that window of exposure and his surprisingly rich Interscope debut EP Rumble And Sway, Commons seems to be at the very beginning of a musical career likely to be long and fruitful.

Born in Bristol, England, but raised in Chicago—for many, the home of a specific kind of blues—Commons had a fruitful musical childhood, thanks to a father who took him to shows by Neil Young and the Allman Brothers, his teaching himself guitar, and a voice that simply wouldn’t stop getting bigger and bigger.

Back in the UK, Commons eventually signed a deal with producer Alex Da Kid’s KIDinaKORNER label, which brought forth Rumble And Sway—a package that brings to mind American

Superhumanoids-WebAn intriguing LA combo with a rather memorable name, Superhumanoids play a subtle, groove-oriented sound that is hallmarked by interesting arrangements and, without exception, very memorable material.

Consisting of Sarah Chernoff, Cameron Parkins and Max St. John, the band has been together since 2010. While a few distinctive EPs have emerged, and a wealth of positive reviews, it’s safe to say that the band’s upcoming album—titled Exhibitionists and due from the Innovative Leisure label on June 11th—will likely garner them the international attention they deserve. Solid songs, contextualized via an electro-pop feel that feels distinctly modern and non-retro, may be the major reason—but that they don’t especially sound like anyone else is no small matter, either.

An early morning session at the Y! Music studios at the South By Southwest convention was one of this year’s Austin highlights. The quiet, melodic nature of the songs leapt out clearly in that laidback context, and the charming simplicity of their instrumental set-up—devices that could be carried in small suitcases—only added to their appeal. Currently on the road, and waiting to unleash Exhibitionists, Superhumanoids are a band very much worth watching out for. As you’ll see below.

One of the most colorful and creative new artists to make an appearance at this year’s South By Southwest confab was 27-year-old John O’Regan, better known to some as John O and to even more as Diamond Rings. Currently on the road promoting his latest album Free Dimensional, the singer/multi-instrumentalist has a unique musical style which combines elements of sythpop, raw rock, and—if appearances count for anything—glam-rock, yet always sounds freshly original rather than deliberately derivative. This is not a small thing.

A Canadian from the Toronto area, the singer got his start via indie band the D’Urbervilles; his Diamond Rings persona began in 2008 and surfaced the next year with the single “All Yr Songs.” His first album Special Affections first saw release on Canada’s Secret City label in 2010 but was soon picked up by Astralwerks here in the States; it received significant press attention and soon helped place him on Robyn’s North American tour of 2011, which swiftly brought him to a much wider audience.

One of the completely unexpected highlights of this year’s South By Southwest conference was the appearance of legendary power-pop pioneers Shoes—the much-respected combo from Zion, Illinois who since the late ‘70s have blazed the trail with a non-stop series of divinely inspired rock and roll albums largely regarded as classics.

Celebrating the release of Ignition—their first new album in 18 years—the band drew curious crowds who came to witness gems from the band’s impressive catalog performed live for perhaps the very first time: Live Shoes performances, by this very studio-friendly band, are comparatively rare events. That same catalog, incidentally, was recently tastefully sampled via the recent Shoes compilation 35 Years - The Definitive Shoes Collection 1977 – 2012.

We at Y! Music were delighted to welcome Shoes to our Austin Headquarters this year, and very curious to see how the live quartet—band founders Gary Klebe, Jeff Murphy and John Murphy and drummer John

One of the most energetic and rhythmic new bands to put in an appearance at this year’s South By Southwest conference was Australia’s Gold Fields—a compelling quintet whose new album Black Sun is one of 2013’s most interesting debuts.

Longtime friends who mostly grew up in Ballarat, close to Melbourne, the band took their diverse tastes and in 2010 melded them together to create a demo that would ultimately result in the creation of an excellent self-titled EP featuring their catchy debut single “Treehouse.” Consisting of Mark Robert Fuller (vocals), Vin Andanar (guitar & vocals), Luke Peldys (bass), Rob Clifton (keyboards & percussion) and Ryan D’Sylva (drums), Gold Fields then put considerable effort into recording an even more solid debut album—which finally surfaced as the recent Black Sun. Filled with highly melodic tunes, varied in arrangement but always danceable and rhythmic, the album seems like an excellent taster for a band who look likely to evolve at a very swift pace.

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Amid the massive roster of artists appearing at the recent South By Southwest music conference in Austin—an event typically featuring a mix of trendy rock bands, esoteric hiphoppers and Americana-inspired roots rockers—was one particularly unusual booking. And that would be Ólafur Arnalds—a young, neo-classical composer whose music does not easily fit into any played-out category.

Arnalds, a 26-year-old multi-instrumentalist from Mosfellsbær, Iceland, releases his latest album here this week on Mercury Classics, and it’s absolutely stunning. Titled For Now I Am Winter, the album features Arnalds’ innovative instrumental work bolstered by orchestral arrangements from composer Nico Muhly and—a first for the artist—four vocal tracks featuring Icelandic vocalist Arnor Dan. It’s an album likely to appeal to music fans of all sorts--classical, jazz, electronic, experimental rock—and it provides ample evidence why Arnalds’ appealing music has already appeared on the soundtracks of many