you guys! it’s been a while since i had a show, eh? started my second year of teaching yesterday, so let’s call this the BACK TO SCHOOL edition of what’s good. ugh.

1. arcade fire – we used to wait
2. neon indian – deadbeat summer
3. magic kids – memphis
4. blackbird blackbird – float on
5. breathe owl breathe – swimming
6. coma cinema – business as usual
7. total warr – gangsta rap
8. summer camp – round the moon
9. summer camp – jake ryan
10. delorean – simple graces
11. dj o-face – omg xxxo (usher vs. m.i.a.)
12. dj o-face – brought bad out – brahms vs. michael jackson)
13. dj o-face – izzo rhythm (jay-z vs. sleigh bells)
14. dj o-face – dirt on your crown (jay-z vs. sleigh bells)

hey, you guys! turns out last week i was the one malfunctioning when i couldn’t broadcast. forgot to turn my wireless on. OOPS! anyway, here i am! first show in a while, got tons of great stuff for you. tune in 6-8.
1. elvis presley – it wouldn’t be the same without you
2. steve martin & bernadette peters – tonight you belong to me
3. xavier cugat – perfidia
4. the avalanches – since i left you
5. the radio dept. – where damage isn’t already done
6. the walkmen – there goes my baby (the drifters cover)
7. bibio – lovers’ carvings
8. the morning benders – have one on me (joanna newsom cover feat. j dilla)
9. arcade fire – modern man
10. arcade fire – rococo
11. arcade fire – city with no children
12. magic kids – hey boy
13. tennis – baltimore
14. beat connection – in the water
15. best coast – crazy for you
16. kid cudi, best coast & rostam batmanglij from vampire weekend – all summer
17. kid cudi – erase me (feat. kanye west)
18. big boi – shine blockas (feat. gucci mane)
19. freddie gibbs – national anthem (fuck the world)
20. j. cole – playground
21. the-dream – love king
22. my sick uncle – us (me & mrs. officer)
23. my sick uncle – fear forever
24. dj o-face – omg you’re hot and cold (usher vs. katy perry)
25. dj o-face – you could be hypnotized (snow patrol vs. plies & akon)
26. edward sharpe & the magnetic zeros – home
27. the very best – warm heart of africa
28. m.i.a. – tell me why
29. miniature tigers – mansion of misery
30. miniature tigers – bullfighter jacket
31. zee avi – just you and me
32. james yuill – you always do
33. the morning benders – stitches
34. arcade fire – the suburbs (continued)

Suburban sprawl seemed like an unlikely target for inspiration and an album worth of material when Arcade Fire announced their third LP, The Suburbs, in May. We’ve seen them tackle the complexities of youth, family and death (Funeral) and monopolizing institutions (Neon Bible), but strip malls and housing developments?

The Suburbs is an ode to Win and Will Butler’s memories of growing up in suburban Texas, but it’s also a record that digs much deeper than simple autobiography and comes up with gold. Arcade Fire have created a masterpiece with deeper themes like growing up and moving on, wasted youth and a society in which things built so close together can seem so far apart.

Take, for example, “Wasted Hours,” a gorgeous slow jam on the record’s backend. It’s built on light percussion and a simple, repetitive yet elegant guitar riff. Like we’ve come to expect from Arcade Fire, the instrumentation is pristine but on closer inspection, Butler’s lyrics are what stand out and re-ground us in what this record is all about: “Spent the summer staring out the window/The wind it takes you where it wants to go/First they built the road, then they built the town/That’s why we’re still driving around and around/And all we see are kids in buses longing to be free.”

It’s hard to pull out standouts from a record this lush in its orchestration and lyricism and relentless in its exploration of an overarching theme. There are guitar-driven rockers (“Modern Man,” “City With No Children), there are piano-heavy ballads (“We Used To Wait,” “The Suburbs”) and string-laden epics (“Rococo,” “Empty Room”), even a little bit of ABBA-esque disco (“Sprawl II [Mountains Beyond Mountains]”). The Suburbs strikes a perfect balance between these types of song, never relying too heavily on one instrument or one band member.

Length is this record’s Achilles Heel. It’s obvious the band had some troubles cutting the album down and at a little longer than an hour, it can be tough to make it all the way through. A few more edits to cut the time by just ten minutes could have made The Suburbs even more of a masterpiece, but it’s tough to point to which songs could have or should have gotten the axe.

The Suburbs’ strongest hand is in its overarching themes of just what the suburbs are and mean to the people growing up there. On “Suburban War,” Butler yearns to get out: “In the suburbs I/I learned to drive/And you told me we would never survive/So grab your mother’s keys/We leave tonight.” That youthful angst and frustration with a place a supposed utopia that’s actually a personal hell saturates this record. This is how Win and Will Butler felt growing up near Houston Texas, and this is their rally cry and anthem for today’s modern suburban kids who feel the same way.

On “Rococo,” Butler damns the corporations and construction companies treating suburbia like a rotating wheel of opportunity. “They build it up just to burn it back down/The wind is blowing all the ashes around/Oh my dear god, what is that horrible sound?” We hear similar frustrations on “Sprawl (Flatland).” Backed by haunting cacophony of piano and strings, Butler croons: “Let’s take a drive through the sprawl/Through these towns they built to change/And then you said ‘Emotions are dead’/It’s no wonder you feel so estranged.”

The record’s potent lyrical themes and impeccable instrumentation are polished to perfection on the title tracks that bookend the album. The opener, “The Suburbs” is a simple piano-and-acoustic-guitar anthem in which Butler again implores “grab your mother’s keys, we’re leaving” while also craving something greater for his children: “I want a daughter while I’m still young/I want to hold her hand/Show her some beauty before all this damage is done.” That’s what this record is really all about: frustrating memories from a youth viewed as wasted in suburban hell.

Then there’s the closer, “The Suburbs (continued),” the most gorgeous, rich and deep song on The Suburbs. At 1:28, it’s by far the shortest song on the record, but it doesn’t take long to get its point across. As a lush symphony of strings swirls around, Win Butler and wife Regine Chassagne end the record on a nostalgic note: “If I could have it back/All the time that we wasted/I would love to waste it again.” It’s a sweet and hopeful tone rarely witnessed over the course of the record, one that gives us reason to believe that Butler & co. are done regretting wasted youth. Rather, as they grow older, they want to go back and do it all again.

Rating: 9.4/10

(The Suburbs is due out August 3 via Merge Records. Pre-order here.)

hey, you guys! surprise! i’m broadcasting on a thursday. i had a string of bad luck the past two tuesdays (cable guy broke our internet last week, car broke down so i was stranded in new haven this week), so i figured i’d show you all how much i appreciate you for listening. i’ll return the favor with a surprise, special thursday edition of what’s good! WOW! tune in. enjoy it.

SORRY GUYS. it looks like the ac+r server is being a bit finicky this evening. i just can’t catch a break.

mp3 of this show available here.

you guys. it is so hot outside. i’m actually sweating here in my air-conditioned room, it’s that hot out. ridiculous. let’s cool off with some hazy summer jams, shall we? LET’S GO.
1. vampire weekend – diplomat’s son
2. samuel – i heart ny
3. the black keys – tighten up
4. best coast – boyfriend
5. big boi – hustle blood (feat. jamie foxx)
6. big boi – shine blockas (feat. gucci mane)
7. andre 3000 – all together now
8. janelle monae – tightrope (feat. big boi)
9. wavves – baseball cards
10. wavves – mickey mouse
11. the notorious b.i.g. – respect
12. kanye west – school spirit
13. the roots – right on (feat. joanna newsom, sts)
14. 2pac – do for love (vodka & milk remix)
15. justin bieber – somebody to love
16. magic kids – summer
17. cults – oh my god
18. the beach boys – sloop john b
19. robyn – don’t fucking tell me what to do
20. robyn – dancing on my own
21. sleigh bells – riot rhythm
22. weezer – say it ain’t so
23. m.i.a. – teqkilla
24. m.i.a. – xxxo
25. she & him – me and you
26. the morning benders – stitches
27. snowden – don’t really know me
28. edward sharpe & the magnetic zeros – home (rac remix)

you guys! i have been gone for so long! i missed you so much! it’s great to be back! can you tell that i am excited?!?! (!) for real, though, i haven’t had a show in about a month. and of course i heard so many great songs in that month that i cannot wait to share with you this evening. good to be back.
1. animal collective – graze
2. hot spa – kiola beach
3. magic kids – summer
4. tennis – marathon
5. wild nothing – summer holiday
6. freelance whales – location
7. the drums – forever and ever amen
8. arcade fire – the suburbs
9. ceo – come with me
10. christina aguilera – elastic love (feat. m.i.a.)
11. drake vs. coldplay – the best strawberry
12. drake vs. coldplay – the fly scientist
13. dj o-face – it’s over but stay close (drake vs. delorean)
14. kid cudi – all talk (feat. chip tha ripper and christian bale)
15. kid cudi – REVOFEV
16. kanye west – power
17. j. cole – higher
18. dj bc – don’t worry, be perfect (bobby mcferrin vs. cl smooth)
19. wavves – mickey mouse
20. wavves – post acid
21. delorean – stay close (banana clipz remix)
22. surfer blood – swim (alpaca remix)
23. delta spirit – bushwick blues
24. tame impala – solitude is bliss
25. suckers – save your love for me
26. the morning benders – go grab a stranger
27. the morning benders – promises

hey, you guys! so summer is just around the corner! summer vacation is so close, i can taste it. (it tastes a lot like a gin & tonic.)

anyway, i just wanted to let you guys know that what’s good will be taking the briefest of summer breaks for the next couple of weeks. tuesday, june 8, is my LAST DAY OF SCHOOL of my first year teaching. as you can imagine, i am going to party that night. i am going to party hard that night. as much as i would love to live-dj said partying, i will likely be at a bar and unable to do so. SAD FACE. please excuse my absence on that night and understand that I DESERVE THIS.

the week after that, june 15, i have a previously-scheduled meeting which i must attend during my tuesday timeslot. so, unfortunately, no show that night, either.

but i’ll be back! i promise! mark your calendars for june 22. that’s when i return. i’m sure i’ll have A TON of great music to share with you guys from the past couple of weeks. and don’t worry! i’ll keep blogging my little heart out. i’ll let you know about new tracks, post some album reviews, and maybe even some show reviews. WHO KNOWS!

enjoy your start of summer. i know i will.

Maya’s got the world at her fingertips as of late with a rock-infused single and its ginger-hating video. She followed that up with her poppiest tune to date, surprise-attacked a Sleigh Bells show in Brooklyn and gave details on the release of her new album, /\/\/\Y/\.

BREATHE, M.I.A.

Now, the indie hip-hop goddess has landed the cover story of the coming week’s New York Times Magazine, a sprawling, nine-page profile of arguably the hottest and biggest woman in music today.

Check it out while you wait for /\/\/\Y/\‘s release via her label N.E.E.T. on July 13.

Arcade Fire have been very secretive about the release of their new single. Here’s what we knew, before today: the A-side would be “The Suburbs” with “Month of May” as the b-side. It would be available on 12″ vinyl. It had a reported release date of June 1.

Well, all of that info became moot today when the two songs leaked online. Some independent record stores in the US and the UK stocked the 12″ single a little early and, naturally, some radio DJs (namely BBC1) got their hands on it.

“The Suburbs” is a sprawling, escalating piano ballad, akin to “Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels).” “Month of May” has a harder, edgier rock sound. Listen to them both via the links below. Buy the 12″ at your local premature-stocking indie record store or anywhere else on Tuesday. No word yet on a full-length LP from the Canadian troupe, but with tons of festival dates lined up for the summer, I doubt these two songs are all we’re hear from Win Butler & cetera.

Discuss in comments.

Arcade Fire – The Suburbs
Arcade Fire – Month of May

you guys! the sun is shining, it is HOT outside and with memorial day weekend coming up in just three days, it is safe to say SUMMER IS HERE! so join me tonight as i ring in the beautiful season with the best summer jams. i’m talking breezy, sunny songs that you want to blast with the windows down while driving to the beach. say hello to summer with me and TUNE IN.

1. aerosmith – sweet emotions
2. the archies – sugar, sugar
3. buffalo springfield – for what it’s worth
4. paul oakenfold – starry eyed surprise
5. black eyed peas – one tribe
6. robyn – fembot
7. darwin deez – radar detector
8. devendra banhart – baby
9. kings of leon – use somebody (andre anjos remix)
10. the ataris – so long, astoria
11. blink 182 – all the small things
12. jimmy eat world – the middle
13. coolio – the winner
14. m.i.a. – sunshowers
15. keri hilson (feat. kanye west & ne-yo) – knock you down
16. dj o-face (that’s me!) – a milli guitars (sleigh bells vs. lil wayne)
17. animal collective – summertime clothes
18. weezer – island in the sun
19. katy perry – california gurls (feat. snoop dogg)
20. mika – lollipop
21. the morning benders – crosseyed
22. noah and the whale – 5 years time
23. okkervil river – unless it’s kicks
24. cults – go outside
25. yacht – psychic city
26. lfo – summer girls
27. o-town – we fit together
28. the format – if work permits
29. b.o.b. – lovelier than you

download mp3 of this show HERE.

you guys! it’s been so long! i feel like i haven’t broadcast in AGES! well, here goes. what’s good! again! i missed you guys. so much great music to play for you tonight. so many great stories to tell. so much to do! so little time! let’s get to it.

1. bronze – horses
2. mumm-ra – she’s got you high
3. princeton – shout it out
4. class actress – let me take you out
5. the national – terrible love
6. the national – lemonworld
7. cults – go outside
8. wolf parade – oh you, old thing
9. dom – burn bridges
10. free energy – free energy
11. sleigh bells – tell ‘em
12. sleigh bells – run the heart
13. sleigh bells – rill rill
14. sleigh bells – crown on the ground
15. dum dum girls – blank girl
16. happy birthday – girls fm
17. lcd soundsystem – all i want
18. geographer – kites
19. don will & wallpaper – love junkie
20. the libertines – death on the stairs
21. m.i.a. – xxxo
22. miniature tigers – gold skull
23. we have band – you came out
24. lemonade – big weekend (delorean remix)
25. delorean – stay close (sun airway remix)

Artist: LCD Soundsystem
Title: This is Happening
Release Date: May 18
Label: DFA

Last we heard from James Murphy, he was brooding about New York bringing him down and pontificating on the “Us vs. Them” mentality of the world. 2007’s Sound of Silver was a breakthrough record for LCD Soundsystem, an indie dance smash with arguably the best song of the past decade, “All My Friends,” a sprawling piano epic about desperately trying to hold onto something great.

Three years later and Murphy’s back with This is Happening, an intimately deeper and personal record. Where Sound of Silver was intense in its breakneck beats (“Time To Get Away”) and political commentary (“North American Scum”), This is Happening gives us Murphy’s thoughts on moving on (“Dance Yrself Clean”), living up to expectations (“You Wanted A Hit”) and finding a place to feel comfortable (“Home”).

Those beats, synths, and in-your-face dance bass lines that dominated Sound of Silver and the band’s 2005 self-titled debut are here again, though more scattered than expected. Murphy waits until three minutes deep into the album’s opener, “Dance Yrself Clean,” to let the beat drop. Rest assured, though, that when he lets it drop, he lets it drop hard. The last six minutes of the song are indie dancehall heaven, with raging drum machines paired with Murphy’s wailing about aging and escaping failed relationships (“Every night’s a different story/It’s a thirty care pile-up with you/Everybody’s getting younger/It’s the end of an era, it’s true.”).

That excellent opener leads into “Drunk Girls,” Murphy’s ode to nightclub love. It’s the record’s lead single and weakest song, and therein lies the problem with This is Happening: littered amongst its gems are weak songs that don’t pull their weight to keep the record afloat. Some of these songs that feel like they must be slogged through (“Drunk Girls,” “One Touch,” “Somebody’s Calling Me”) don’t do enough to inspire repeat listens. A record that feels like a collection of a few strong singles mixed with tracks better served as tossed-aside b-sides is never a good thing, and that’s what makes This is Happening frustratingly inconsistent.

This is Happening is not a bad record. Even Murphy’s worst work manages to rise above the fray of mediocrity. And when This is Happening shines, it shines brightly. Take, for example, “All I Want,” a nearly-seven-minute-long emotional ballad of yearning. It’s guitar driven, with a persistent, slow-jam riff blended with Murphy’s beats. Murphy’s lyrics are at their strongest here, decrying the pain of waiting and begging for pity (“Wait for the day you come home from the lonely park/Look for the girl who has put up with all of your shit/You’ve never needed anyone for so long.”).

Then there’s album closer “Home.” This is Murphy’s real anthem on moving on (he has stated that This is Happening will likely be LCD Soundsystem’s final record). It’s a moody and brooding eight-minute look into the soul of a seemingly lost James Murphy, complete with relentless bass and ‘70s-disco synths. But again, the song’s strongest suit is Murphy’s words. “If you’re afraid of what you need/Look around you/It won’t get any better,” he warns after wondering aloud, “And this is what you waited for/But under lights we’re all unsure/So tell me/What would make you feel better?”

This song, this record, can’t help but give off the vibe that Murphy’s unhappy and longing for something new. This is Happening may not be the end of LCD Soundsystem. But there’s a lingering feeling of closure at the end of the record, like Murphy has said his piece and is ready to move on. It just would have been nice if the good-bye had been a little sweeter.

Rating: 7.9/10

Artist: Sleigh Bells
Title: Treats
Label: N.E.E.T./Mom & Pop
Release Date: May 11

Has there been a buzzier band in recent memory than Sleigh Bells? The noise-pop duo of Alexis Krauss and Derek Miller exploded into the blogosphere last October with a handful of CMJ shows scattered throughout their stomping grounds of Brooklyn and a CD-R littered with fuzzy, lo-fi demos.

Sleigh Bells were praised for their wild, energetic live shows that were usually described in one word: LOUD. The demos provided the same, ear-pulsating effect. Bloggers drooled over the grungy dance-pop of “A/B Machines” and “Ring Ring.” The standout “Crown on the Ground” was Best-New-Music’ed and Top-100-Tracks-of-2009’ed by Pitchfork. Not too shabby for a guy and girl who met in a restaurant, recorded some demos and played a handful of shows.

As 2010 dawned and Sleigh Bells were signed to M.I.A.’s N.E.E.T. Recordings label, one question hung over the most-blogged-about band of 2009: Can this band possibly deliver a full-length LP to live up to the hype? That LP, Treats, has finally arrived. And Sleigh Bells use their signature fuzz, bubble-gum pop vocals bred with hardcore-inspired riffs for 32 minutes of bliss to respond to the world with a resounding yes, we can.

What Sleigh Bells have done with Treats is what fans of the demos had hoped for and what newcomers will find sonically pleasing. Songs like “Infinity Guitars” and “A/B Machines” have kept the core ingredients that made the demos so lovable and great in the first place – there’s the bubblegum-pop sensibilities of Krauss’ vocals juxtaposed with Miller’s thumping, relentless riffs that are deeply-seeded in his hardcore roots.

No song on Treats sounds over-produced – they all keep the lo-fi, noisy fuzz sound that gave the demos their unique and lovable aesthetic. The closest to high-quality, slickly-produced pop we’ve got here is “Rill Rill” (formerly known as “Ring Ring). Krauss’ voice sounds particularly polished here, and the addition of the literal ringing of a bell on top of the Funkadelic sample of the demo that fans fell in love with make this song ready for radio.

Apart from “Rill Rill,” Treats is littered with loud, pounding rock. As much attention as Krauss gets for the band’s success (she is the pretty face, after all), Miller’s also a great star here. His production is top-notch and his hooks and riffs hold the songs together like heavy glue.

Take “Infinity Guitars,” for example. Through the first 1:50 of the song, it remains unchanged from its demo version – a steady beat mixed with Krauss’ best punk screams and a simple, catchy riff on Miller’s guitar. Then, with 40 seconds left in the song, all hell breaks loose. Miller took what was a simple breakdown point in the demo song and turned it into a complete, in-your-face, turn-your-speakers-up-as-loud-as-you-can jam session.

Other gems littered throughout the record are the brand new “Riot Rhythm” and “Run the Heart,” a rare Sleigh Bells slow jam about a messy breakup: “You want to know what’s good for me?/You don’t know, you don’t really want to know/You took my heart, I can take out you,” a dejected Krauss mopes.

And then there’s “Crown on the Ground,” – the song that arguably started it all for the band. It’s the demo Stereogum posted when naming them a Band to Watch in October. It’s the song Pitchfork posted days later under its “Best New Music.” It’s the song with which the band closes out every single setlist. And it’s here, on a brilliant, heavy and bold debut, that it gets its turn to shine.

Sleigh Bells knew well enough to not fix something that’s not broken with this song. The Treats version is the same length as the demo and, with the opening riff, sounds like we’re in for the exact same song. But when the beat drops at the 12-second mark, we hear a deeper, more tightly-produced sound than the pure noise we’ve come to expect from Sleigh Bells since they took the indie rock world by storm last year.

“Crown” really epitomizes the brilliance of Treats: it takes the band’s signature sound, adds a little bit of polish while leaving behind a necessary amount of fuzz and noise and then rocks out with a level of intensity that can be matched by few bands in the industry today. “Crown on the Ground” is a song and Treats is an album that begs to be played at full volume, at full intensity and with full energy. Derek and Alexis wouldn’t have it any other way.

Rating: 9.2/10

On today’s audiocandy+radio, Paige played the morning benders’ “I Was Wrong” from their 2008 debut, Talking Through Tin Cans. She mentioned the band’s re-worked version of the song, which they call the “Nico Version.”

the morning benders (again, so stubborn with the lowercase letters) recorded this new version of the song for an exclusive iTunes Live Sessions EP. As Paige said, this beautiful acoustic ballad is testament to just how brilliant Chris Chu and company are as musical artists. They took an upbeat piano and guitar sing-along and stripped it down to its bare necessities, adding a double dose of emotion. You can hear the heartbreak in Chu’s voice as he recalls, “I’ve seen love kick a man while he’s down when you think that you’re alone,” and later when he argues “I’ve been waiting too patiently for life to turn its back on me and not just go my way.”

Check out “I Was Wrong (Nico Version)” here.

Artist: The National
Title: High Violet
Release Date: May 11
Label: 4AD

“Runaway,” a slow burner tucked eight songs deep into The National’s fifth LP, High Violet, bottles up everything about this band into five-and-a-half minutes of bliss. A slow, melodic lullaby of piano and acoustic guitar waltz with Matt Berninger’s moody baritone and subtle drum beats. “We don’t bleed when we don’t fight/Go ahead, go ahead, lose our shirts in the fire tonight,” Berninger croons while the music swells behind him.

It’s a song you’d expect to build and build before exploding into something heavier towards the end, but it never happens. Berninger’s vocals grow more eager and yearning as the song rolls along, but this song is a slow jam in true National fashion. We’re left with something that’s beautiful in its simplicity.

The National have become masters of this game – making lush rock songs that don’t ever really rock. High Violet feels like a natural follow-up to 2007’s Boxer – we have the same brooding melodies littered with raw emotion. Take “Afraid of Everyone,” which features backup vocals by Sufjan Stevens. A slow guitar riff opens into Berninger’s paranoia: “With my kid on my shoulders I try/Not to hurt anybody I love/But I don’t have the drugs to sort it out.” It’s not until the 1:15 mark that we get percussion and more guitar, making “Afraid of Everyone” one of many slow-builders scattered throughout High Violet.

The band – made up of Berninger, Bryce and Aaron Dessner (twins) and Bryan and Scott Devendorf (brothers) – do branch out from what has become that very formulaic sound of theirs. On album opener “Terrible Love,” we’re given distorted, glitchy guitar riffs that fit the song’s eerie, maybe-I’m-better-off-without-drugs tone. “But I won’t follow you into the rabbit hole,” Berninger solemnly chants while a persistent, thumping beat swirls up, making this a perfect driving song.

It’s tough to pick out a weak spot on this record – most songs flow seamlessly into each other and High Violet really does feel like a meticulous, planned-out work of art. A couple of songs – “Anyone’s Ghost” comes to mind right away – are weaker than the ones surrounding them. That’s not to say they’re bad songs. They’re not. But when you’ve got gems like “Runaway” and the gorgeous, fall-in-love-with-me “Conversation 16,” there are going to be natural low points on the record.

The album closes with “Vanderlyle Crybaby Geeks,” a song the band have been kicking around a live shows for a while now. It’s a slow ballad with simple piano chord progression, strings and, perhaps, Berninger’s most emotional-sounding vocals on the album. “All the very best of us/string ourselves up for love.” The song sounds like a band that has mastered its signature sound, a band that has grown comfortable with that sound.

And as the song closes out with lyrics like “Oh, the waters are rising/There’s still no surprising you,” we can’t help but feel like this is The National’s message to us: this is our sound, we’re sticking with it. And we’re here to stay.

Rating: 8.9/10

When Brooklyn outfit Detachment Kit split, two of its members, Charlie Davis and Ian Menard, weren’t quite ready to hang up their guitars. They grabbed good friend Jess Birch and formed Bronze, a still-Brooklyn-based baby band with a grown-up sound.

Charlie and Ian left behind the grungy, lo-fi slowcore of Detachment Kit for deeper, multi-layered grooves with Bronze. Their self-titled debut EP, just five songs long, offers a wide spectrum of sound that shows a ton of promise.

We’ve got Beach House-esque dream pop with “Deep Freeze” and light, breezy summer fare with “Sunny Day,” which sounds like a tossed-away b-side from Delorean’s Subiza. “Count to Two” gives us something heavier and shows why the band were openers for buzzed-about (and James Murphy produced) Free Energy earlier this year. “Sara Lisa” closes it all out with a taut package of all of the above.

But the real charmer here is the opener, “Horses.” It kicks in with the space-to-Earth broadcast from NASA’s Apollo 8 mission, when man first left Earth’s orbit. The fuzzy voice is slowly overcome by dueling guitar riffs and finally fades out into a blissful explosion of sunny pop. “Take a ride with me tonight/Are we ever gonna feel alright?” the lyrics ask. Yes, we are.

Check out Bronze’s MySpace and download their debut EP for free on their website.

download mp3 of this show HERE.

hey, you guys! i have completely lost my voice! it is literally down to a whisper. so unfortunately, i won’t be able to do any talking in between songs tonight. i’ll just play all the way through the playlist posted below. tune in. enjoy it. music, music, music.

1. sleigh bells – tell ‘em

2. sleigh bells – ring ring

3. sleigh bells – 2hellwu

4. the postal service – nothing better

5. b.o.b. – lovelier than you

6. dirty projectors – cannibal resource

7. gorillaz – empire ants

8. keepaway – i think about you all the time

9. the joy formidable – whirring (brahms remix)

10. julian casablancas – left & right in the dark

11. neon indian – terminally chill

12. lemonade – lifted

13. drake – find your love

14. the velvet underground – after hours

15. the velvet underground – sunday morning

16. lou reed – take a walk on the wild side

17. the national – mistaken for strangers

18. the national – conversation 16

19. electric president – monsters

20. princeton – shout it out

21. radiohead – scatterbrain (as dead as leaves)

22. radiohead – idioteque

23. thom yorke – black swan

24. animal collective – peacebone

25. animal collective – fireworks

26. panda bear – comfy in nautica

27. tanlines – bees

28. two door cinema club – do you want it all?

29. the morning benders – i wanna be like you (jungle book cover)

30. the morning benders – strangers in the night (frank sinatra cover)

31. the morning benders – i was wrong (nico version)

Artist: Delorean

Album Title: Subiza

Label: True Panther

Release Date: Out now digitally, CD/LP out June 8

First impressions are everything, so it’s a good thing Spanish foursome Delorean chose “Stay Close” as the opener for the sprawling album Subiza.

It’s a majestic song, full of washed-out vocals and house beats and beach synths. “Now I’m lost/Why can’t I reach you?” the band asks in its Animal-Collective-esque harmony, before a rapid-fire chorus of “Get up, get up, get up, get up, get up, get up.” Think Merriweather Post Pavilion’s “Brothersport” meets a house DJ stoned out of his mind on a Barcelona beach.

That’s the vibe all of Subiza gives off – an airy, breezy sun-shiney, summery, feel-good trip for the ears. This is a collection of nine complex songs, each with its own plateau and climax. We’ve got the gorgeous “Real Love,” which has a relentless, pulsating synth and a floating chorus of “ahhhs” that gives off the feeling of, well, real love.

The tracklist here reads like an epic love story, with titles that perfectly encompass the light, feel-good vibe of the album. We’ve got: Stay Close, Real Love, Endless Sunset, Grow, Simple Graces, Infinite Desert, Come Wander, Warmer Places, It’s All Ours.

Album highlight “Simple Graces” is crammed in the middle of the set – which, I’ll admit, sounds monotonous in parts. “Graces,” though, epitomizes Subiza’s sound. There’s, again, the trippy, washed-out, barely decipherable vocals. A steady bass line accompanies the jungle beat and the rest of the deep, bright instrumentation that makes the song a quintessential summer jam.

But Delorean may have tried a bit too hard with Subiza to capture that light feeling of the summer sun. There’s the aforementioned monotony of some of the songs, which bleed into each other and never really stand out as single entities. 25 listens deep, and I still couldn’t tell you which song is “Endless Sunset” and which is “Come Wander” just by listening to them.

But when Subiza is on its game, it’s a glorious trip for the ears. “Stay Close” is a definite keeper and, as the album’s lead single, will be most listeners’ first introduction to the band.

Subiza ends the way it begins – on a strong and high (in more ways than one) note. A simple drum beat grows into something deeper – layers upon layers of synths, piano, guitar, fuzzed-out vocals and bass that explode into a wild conglomeration of sound. It all drops at the two-and-a-half-minute mark into an epic star-gazing pop melody before quickly picking up again. This moment is maybe Delorean at their best – toying with your ears with something so complex and deep before replacing it with something simpler, but more beautiful.

I’ll admit that I liked Subiza more upon first listen than I do at listen number 26. Don’t get me wrong, it is a gorgeous, deep, brilliant and fantastic record that deserves many accolades. It’ll likely find a strong place in my year-end Top 10 list. I just can’t shake the feeling it may have been better served as an EP with a couple of tracks shaved from the final cut.

Rating: 8.4/10

hey, you guys! tonight’s the last thursday edition of what’s good. SAD FACE. i’ll miss thursdays. but we still have tuesdays! tune in, this one’s FOR YOU.

download mp3 of this show HERE.

1. animal collective – what would i want? sky

2. albert hammond jr. – gfc

3. radiohead – all i need

4. against me! – thrash unreal

5. muse – starlight

6. the strokes – whatever happened

7. band of horses – is there a ghost

8. grizzly bear – he hit me

9. josh ritter – the temptation of adam

10. department of eagles – in ear park

11. delorean – seasun (john talabot’s kids & drums remix)

12. beach house – lover of mine

13. brahms – brought it out

14. sleigh bells – tell ‘em

15. sleigh bells – crown on the ground

16. sleigh bells – infinity guitars

17. free energy – something in common

18. interpol – lights

19. the national – conversation 16

20. spoon – i summon you

21. arcade fire – headlights look like diamonds

22. amadou and mariam – sabali

23. gorillaz – on melancholy hill

24. phoenix – long distance call

25. passion pit – moth’s wings

26. lcd soundsytem – all my friends

Sleigh Bells’ highly-anticipated debut, “Treats,” is quickly approaching its May 11 release. In anticipation, the Brooklyn duo have released the lead track from the album, “Tell ‘Em.”

It’s Sleigh Bells as we have come to know and love them — fuzzed out grunge, dance pop. This track has the potential to blow out your speakers. (Just like the band blew out the speakers at The Mill at Trinity College in Hartford earlier this month.

You can download the track HERE, at the official Sleigh Bells Web site, infinitybells.com

Here’s the “Treats” album art, which M.I.A. revealed via Pitchfork’s Twitter (WORLDS COLLIDE!) on Monday, with the tracklist. (Sleigh Bells are signed to M.I.A.’s label N.E.E.T. Recordings and “Treats” will be released on Mom and Pop Records.)

01 Tell ‘Em
02 Kids
03 Riot Rhythm
04 Infinity Guitars
05 Run the Heart
06 Rachel
07 Rill Rill
08 Crown On the Ground
09 Straight A’s
10 A/B Machines
11 Treats

hey, guys! what a terrible day of teaching. worst day of the year by far. BUT! i get to end all of those sorrows with some great music and share it with you! tune in to what’s good from 6-8, right here.

1. animal collective – in the flowers

2. arcade fire – une annee sans lumiere

3. toro y moi – blessa

4. toro y moi – talamak

5. dum dum girls – jail la la

6. the do – stay (just a little bit more)

7. robyn – fembots

8. robyn – cry when you get older

9. vampire weekend – taxi cab

10. dirty projectors – cannibal resource

11. b.o.b. – nothin’ on you (feat. bruno mars)

12. kanye west – family business

13. grizzly bear – about face

14. grizzly bear – foreground

15. the kinks – lola

16. nico – these days

17. the velvet underground – sunday morning

18. simon & garfunkel – cecilia

19. lcd soundsystem – time to get away

20. lcd soundsystem – drunk girls (holy ghost! remix)

21. m.i.a. – born free

22. b.o.b. – the kids

23. the morning benders – promises

24. the morning benders – crosseyed

25. the books – beautiful people

26. radiohead – i might be wrong

27. department of eagles – love me (elvis presley cover)

28. the national – runaway

download tonight’s mp3 HERE.

download the what’s good dance party mp3 HERE.

Artist: the morning benders
Title: Big Echo
Label: Rough Trade
Release Date: March 9

Is it too early to call San Francisco’s the morning benders (who stubbornly insist on keeping the band’s name lowercased) the indie-music-blog darlings of 2010? In February, the band’s video of a live, wall-of-sound recording of the gorgeous “Excuses” hit the Web and immediately sent Christopher Chu et al. soaring into the blog stratosphere.

And for good reason. “Excuses,” which opens “Big Echo,” is a sprawling, five-minute epic full of strings, acoustic strums, and Chu’s yearning vocals. Chu has said the song is about trying to reconcile falling in love for the very first time while trying to picture yourself with someone forever. He nails it on the head here, while crooning lines crafted to make the girls swoon: “We are so smooth now/Our edges are beaten driftwood whittled down/Old bodies slip when they make love/We’ll mine our sparks to shoot us above.”

If there’s one flaw with this record, it’s that it peaks too early with this song. I had a hard time moving beyond “Excuses” my first few times through “Big Echo.” And it’s not for lack of quality music on the rest of the album – there are plenty of gorgeous, sweeping songs to be had here. But with a song this majestic, this good, the morning benders may have been better served to save it for later.

But upon repeat listens, “Big Echo” continues to churn out pleasure for the ears. There’s that killer bass line on lead single “Promises,” which sounds like it was ripped straight from Grizzly Bear’s “Veckatimest.” (Perhaps we can look to Grizzly Bear’s Chris Taylor’s production of “Big Echo” as the source for that inspiration.) There’s the quiet, floating calm of “Wet Cement,” the morning benders’ take on a dream pop love song that returns to the theme of falling in love and growing old. (In it, we move from the opening lyrics of “We met one day in the wet cement,” to “Now the cement’s hardened in my chest.”)

Chris Taylor’s beautiful production is evident throughout “Big Echo.” The liner notes thank Grizzly Bear, and it’s no wonder. “Big Echo” really does feel like a close relative of “Veckatimest.” We’ve got haunting harmonies (“Stitches”) and sunshine-y pop (“All Day Daylight”) and the entire thing is sonically deep (listen to this record on vinyl and try to tell me you don’t notice something new each time.).

I’m not saying that “Big Echo” is essentially “Veckatimest: Redux.” While the two albums have their similarities, “Big Echo” stands tall on its own merits. This is an unexpected record from an unexpected band. (Give their debut, “Talking Through Tin Cans,” a shot and I promise you’ll be shocked at how quickly these guys have matured.)

For one, there’s that deeply-embedded theme about love and maturity and growing old, leaving old pleasures behind, and Chu’s soothing croon embodies it perfectly. “I can’t help but thinking we grew up too fast,” he screams on “Promises.” He continues: “But I know, I know it just won’t last.”

Maybe it will last for the morning benders. The buzz, the sold-out shows, the sonic beauty. I can honestly say that right now, in late April, this is my record of 2010 so far. Yes, it’s early. Far too early to even think about saying it’ll come out on top once all is said and done for the rest of this year. But I can say this: this is an absolutely stunning record, worth the purchase for the opening track alone, that other bands will be hard pressed to pass. Watch out, Grizzly Bear, Chris Chu may be producing you next time around.

Score: 9.3/10

hey, you guys! i’ve got some good news and some bad news.

let me hit you with the bad news first: what’s good will be ceasing its thursday broadcasts and switching to a once-a-week-format show. there are many reasons behind this change for the show, but the main one is this: time. as my first year of teaching winds down, my schedule is CRAZY planning end-of-year things and gearing up for summer. i’ve been finding it difficult to fit in the time to produce two quality shows per week and i always feel drained on thursdays and like i’m not giving you guys, my loyal listeners, the type of show you deserve. i know i can continue to put together a solid show for you guys once per week.

the good news! i will be broadcasting on both tuesday and thursday of this week! this is your last chance to catch a thursday edition of what’s good, so i expect our listener numbers to be THROUGH THE ROOF that night. after this week, i’ll be live, on-air every tuesday night from 6-8.

this was a really tough decision for me because i absolutely love the show, love putting it together and love broadcasting it. i get such a thrill out of putting music i love out there for the world to hear, and i want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart for being there twice a week for the magic of music. hopefully over the summer or once school kicks back into gear this fall i’ll be able to commit to two shows per week again. and hell, who knows, maybe some thursday night i’ll be feeling nostalgic and do an impromptu broadcast for old time’s sake. but until then, tune in this tuesday and thursday, then after that, every tuesday night for what’s good, only here on audiocandyradio.

xoxo, heath

hey, you guys! great show lined up for tonight. grab some friends! gather ’round! tune in! love it! cherish it! forever!

mp3 of this show can be downloaded HERE, you guys!

1. lemonade – lifted

2. yann tiersen – comptine d’un autre: l’apres midi

3. the apples in stereo – c.p.u.

4. black eyed peas – one tribe

5. the do – stay (just a little bit more)

6. the hold steady – hurricane j

7. lcd soundsystem – i can change

8. we are wolves – blue

9. the national – bloodbuzz ohio

10. the national – conversation 16

11. the national – runaway

12. passion pit – sleepyhead (neo tokyo remix)

13. yeah yeah yeahs – heads will roll (a-trak remix, radio edit)

14. m.i.a. – paper planes (diplo remix)

15. the beatles – something

16. delorean – seasun

17. delorean – simple graces

18. beach house – zebra

19. sleigh bells – crown on the ground

20. the morning benders – excuses

21. the morning benders – promises

22. the morning benders – wet cement

23. vampire weekend – a-punk

24. amadou and mariam – sabali

25. the white stripes – hotel yorba

26. sam adams – driving me crazy

27. lcd soundsystem – new york, i love you but you’re bringing me down

hey, you guys! man am i CRAVING the weekend like you wouldn’t believe right now. so, in that spirit, tonight will be DANCE NIGHT on what’s good. i’ve got a ton of great remixes/mashups lined up for the next two hours, so get your dancing shoes on and throw yourself an end-of-week dance party.

1. whitney houston – dance with somebody (tgik remix)

2. torpeedoh – bumpin’

3. torpeedoh – all out

4. britney spears – 3 (electro-house remix)

5. black eyed peas – i gotta feeling (wutam & j-break remix)

6. dj jewboy – hittin’ all the spots

7. dj jewboy – top of the line

8. kanye west – stronger (a-trak remix)

9. vampire weekend – the kids don’t stand a chance (miike snow remix)

10. m.i.a.  – paper planes (alan astor remix)

11. grizzly bear – two weeks (patrick vigil bmore edit)

12. drake – forever (feat. kanye west, lil wayne and eminem) (steve aoki remix)

13. kings of leon – use somebody (andre anjos remix)

14. justin bieber – baby (dj king remix)

15. ke$ha – tik tok (extended house remix)

16. kings of leon – sex on fire (tenzin remix)

17. pitbull – hotel room service (house remix)

18. young money – bedrock (vindata remix)

19. passion pit – sleepyhead (neo tokyo remix)

20. taylor swift – you belong with me (john affy extended remix)

21. la roux – bulletproof (hyper crush remix)

22. yeah yeah yeahs – heads will roll (a-trak remix, club edit)

23. kid cudi – pursuit of happiness (steve aoki dance remix)

24. lil wayne vs. the scrantones – office musik (clockwork edit)

hey, you guys! fever’s gone! but i’ve got this persistent cough and nagging congestion that just won’t quit! oh well. must plow forward with life anyway. TONS of great stuff for you guys tonight. new broken social scene (!) and lcd soundsystem (!!) tracks for you. come back at 6!

1. phoenix – long-distance call

2. crs (lupe fiasco, kanye west, pharrell williams) – us placers

3. death cab for cutie – styrofoam plates

4. broken social scene – texico bitches

5. broken social scene – sentimental x’s

6. black eyed peas – one tribe

7. fang island – life coach

8. those dancing days – those dancing days

9. lcd soundsystem – all i want

10. fionn regan – put a penny in the slot

11. hellogoodbye – when we first met

12. kings of leon – use somebody (andre anjos remix)

13. the postal service – such great heights

14. chairlift – bruises

15. love is all – take your time

16. iron & wine – flightless bird, american mouth

17. band of horses – is there a ghost

18. the morning benders – why don’t they let us fall in love

19. sigur ros – hoppipolla

20. snowden – don’t really know me

21. the strokes – under control

22. animal collective – my girls (maxamilian edit)

23. we are wolves – blue

24. beach house – take care

25. atlas sound – walkabout (feat. noah lennox)

26. lcd soundsystem – home

mp3 of this show, you guys: http://www.divshare.com/download/11051363-054

you guys. i missed work today. i’ve got a fever of 102 degrees and body aches are controlling my body. BUT I WILL NOT BE KEPT DOWN BY ILLNESS. i’ll still be here from 6-8, spinning some great music for you. so tune in. pity me. make me some soup. whatever.

1. takka takka – fever

2. bob dylan – don’t think twice, it’s all right

3. panda bear – comfy in nautica

4. matt pond pa – brooklyn fawn

5. the velvet underground – i’ll be your mirror

6. modest mouse – missed the boat

7. north highlands – collar bones

8. third eye blind – motorcycle drive by

9. wilco – impossible germany

10. playing for change – stand by me

11. jay-z – run this town (feat. kanye west and rihanna)

12. kanye west – robocop

13. akon feat. david guetta – sexy bitch

14. weezer – (if you’re wondering if i want you to) i want you to

15. of montreal – gronlandic edit

16. the hives – declare guerre nucleaire

17. arctic monkeys – mardy bum

18. okkervil river – unless it’s kicks

19. spoon – anything you want

20. the strokes – modern girls and old-fashioned men (feat. regina spektor)

21. rooney – i’m a terrible person

22. two door cinema club – do you want it all?

23. two door cinema club – something good can work

24. two door cinema club – undercover martyn

25. the white stripes – hotel yorba

26. new buffalo – i’ve got you and you’ve got me

27. hellogoodbye – when we first met

28. hellogoodbye – dear jamie…sincerely me

mp3 of what’s good, FEVER EDITION, you guys! http://www.divshare.com/download/11005669-f98

Hey, you guys! Back in school from spring break has me all sorts of miserable, but I’ll try to not let that spoil the fun tonight! Tune in at 6 for two hours of great jams and killer beats.

1. devendra banhart – goin’ back to the place

2. little joy – next time around (video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGHbOZBSv18)

3. clap your hands say yeah – some loud thunder

4. department of eagles – teenagers

5. akon – mr. lonely

6. drake – forever (feat. kanye west, lil wayne & eminem)

7. kanye west – the glory

8. shwayze – sally is a…

9. shwayze – perfect for me

10. interpol – obstacle 1

11. julian plenti – no chance survival

12. electric president – monsters

13. kyle andrews – call and fade

14. the libertines – death on the stairs

15. fang island – life coach

16. brahms – another time

17. brahms – brought it out

***download brahms’ demos over at their site http://www.brahmsband.com for the price of your e-mail address.***

18. sleigh bells – ring ring

19. sleigh bells – a/b machines

20. sleigh bells – beach girls

21. sleigh bells – holly

22. sleigh bells – infinity guitars

23. sleigh bells – 2HELLWU

24. sleigh bells – crown on the ground

heath with sleigh bells' derek miller

sleigh bells' alexis krauss. yes, i was literally that close.

25. yeasayer – o.n.e.

26. summer camp – ghost train

27. lykke li – dance, dance, dance

28. cut copy – out there on the ice

mp3 of this show available for stream/download HERE.

this weather is incredible, you guys! it’s currently sunny and 70 degrees. now THIS is spring break. it’s supposed to continue for the next few days, so to get myself and everyone else AMPED for a killer weekend with weather full of win, let’s do another SO MUCH SUNSHINE edition of what’s good. get your sunglasses on, get outside and enjoy this!

1. m.i.a. – paper planes (diplo remix)

2. weezer – the good life

3. animal collective – grass

4. summer camp – ghost train

5. buddy holly – every day

6. lil wayne vs. the scrantones – office musik

7. the white stripes – you don’t know what love is (you just do as you’re told)

8. neon indian – terminally chill

9. sum 41 – fat lip

10. she & him – thieves

11. kanye west – stronger

12. ingrid michaelson – you and i

13. the libertines – what katie did

14. north highlands – sugar lips

15. the white stripes – black math

16. m.i.a. – amazon

17. the strokes – meet me in the bathroom

18. vampire weekend – a-punk

19. goldfrapp – number 1

20. darwin deez – up in the clouds

21. chairlift – bruises

22. arctic monkeys – a certain romance (demo version)

23. match.com commercial – that’s just me

video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5u4II9qQ3OY&feature=player_embedded

24. the ataris – so long, astoria

25. delorean – stay close

26. duane eddy – rebel rouser

27. noah and the whale – 5 years time

28. passion pit – little secrets

29. the strokes – meet me in the bathroom

30. weezer – el scorcho

mp3 of this SO MUCH SUNSHINE edition of what’s good: HERE.