To download this track, submit your email address. If you already subscribe to The 'Gum Drop, you'll get a link to the file, and if you don't already subscribe, we'll sign you up and send you a link.
Charlotte Hatherley - "Full Circle"
Ex-Ash guitarist and recent Bat For Lashes touring guitarist Charlotte Hatherley recorded her third solo album (and Minty Fresh US debut) New Worlds in a week in London without demos or overdubs. Fittingly, standout "Full Circle" looks emphatically at stripping away the extraneous.
"Full Circle" is a call to arms. What inspired it? For this record I was mostly inspired by art and painters, particularly Kandinsky's color theory. I loved his quest for finding the truth hidden in nature, and his experiments with our instinctive and emotional response to shapes and colors. Those reactions are the most truthful, and finding the truth underneath all our layers is what I'm most interested in. I wanted to create a vibrant, bright and optimistic record. It's about taking action against the throwaway and bland X factor muzak you hear so much at the moment and daring to create long lasting, durable things of beauty.
How does the concept of something coming full circle fit into it? A triangle's brought up, but not as an ends. It's more about shapes and pure blocks of color creating a visceral and emotional response. It could have been a triangle or a square, but I liked the sound of a full circle more!
Premature Evaluation: Beach House - Teen Dream
When we meditated on Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally's gorgeous sophomore album Devotion we had the following to say: [Y]ou can't fall back on Mazzy Star or Galaxie 500 references because they've pushed themselves into their own, unique solar system.... (more)
New Jonathan Boulet Video - "A Community Service Announcement"
This dude's the latest signing to Australia's Modular label, landing with a tidy package of promotional offerings: a catchy, moistly breezy indie-pop debut single that couldn't be better titled for a meet-the-artist track; a subtly arresting/marginally tricked-out video; and a... (more)
New El Guincho - "Antillas (XXXchange Remix)"
When we first heard onetime BTW Pablo Díaz-Reixa, aka El Guincho, we were drawn in by "Antillas," a song we described as "a five-minute bundle of clattering loops and sunny harmonies." It was from the self-released Alegranza!, before he'd signed... (more)
Muse To Headline Coachella 2010?
According to Consequence Of Sound, a previously reliable source pins Muse to the coming year's desert fest headlining slot. Glenn Beck just bought a ticket. The dates are April 16-18. Oh and these Coachella headliner rumors? Needs more Pavement.... (more)
Parents Just Don't Understand Horrorcore
From hardcore to heavy metal to gangsta rap, local TV news teams have long warned parents about the terrifying new sounds rotting teenage brains. This week it's San Fran's KPIX on the horrorcore scene. Not all juggalos are murderers, dad!... (more)