Swell EP: Griff's Room Band - Shut The Case EP [folk rock / pop rock / bluegrass]

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Griff's Room Band is a folk rock/pop trio from Virginia that formed in 2011 and earned its street credit (quite literally) by playing to tourists and locals alike on the streets of Colonial Williamsburg. Over the past few years of their existence, the three friends have tightened up their infectious sound, playing numerous shows at and away from their usual bench location (see picture above). They even traveled over to Europe to enliven other historic streets. Recently, they uprooted their two acoustic guitars and fiddle over to Richmond, VA to live and make music together, which led to their first proper recording.

Their debut EP entitled Shut The Case is a 6-song collection of what Griff's Room Band does best: upbeat folk pop with rich acoustic guitar melodies, lively fiddling, and vocal harmonies that are almost too perfect. From the energetic lead-off track "Cornerbooth" and the sincerity of "Could Be" to the bluegrass-leaning "The Fine Line" and complex intertwined guitar picking of "All In", Griff's Room Band's proves to be a band with enough range to please just about any pedestrian and the originality to attract active listeners.

Download the Shut The Case EP at iTunes or BandCamp and stream the whole thing below. If you happen to be in Richmond, VA on July 25, be sure to join Griff's Room Band and their good vibes for their CD Release Show.

—My personal favorites: Could Be, The Fine Line, All In—

Artist Making Waves: Shivum Sharma [electronic pop / soul]

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After releasing a pair of soulful piano-based bedroom demos last year, 19-year-old South Londoner Shivum Sharma is back with a studio version of the powerful slow-burner that turned heads in the first place, "Flicker", and its lusty B-side "Only You". The two tracks will be on the Flicker EP, which indie label National Anthem (home to CHVRCHES, HAIM, and Sir Sly) will be putting out on March 3.

Shivum Sharma enlisted the help of Warp signee Kwes. to produce his originally piano/vocals-heavy tracks. The result falls somewhere between James Blake and Antony and the Johnsons—unique passionate music with captivating electronic beats and textures that serve to add depth, not to divert attention away from Sharma's vulnerable, compelling croon and his solid piano work.

Enjoy the two tracks below (don't miss the climactic closer on "Flicker") and purchase a copy of the Flicker EP in March!

Artist Making Waves: Astronauts, etc. [dream pop / electronic / pop]

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What do you do when you are studying classical piano at UC Berkeley and you suddenly find out that your future career as a pianist is rendered practically impossible due to arthritis? Well, I suppose you do what Anthony Ferraro did and you drop out of music school to start producing beautiful electronic music under the moniker Astronauts, etc.

With music as celestial as his recording name, Ferraro has been making quite a name for himself despite having drifted away from his original musical aspirations. Astronauts, etc. boasts over 2,500 SoundCloud followers and has been floating around the 'blogosphere' for over a year now, which is a surprise considering his previous projects were scrapped shortly after their realization. However, with recent dreamy pop jams like "Sadie" and "Coldboy", it's hard to imagine Ferraro's current project going anywhere but skyward.

If I had to compare it to something, I'd say Astronauts, etc.'s melodramatic dream pop is a beautiful blend of Neon Indian's lo-fi chillwave, Porcelain Raft's smooth, heartfelt vocals, and Jai Paul's beats and song structures (see "Jasmine"). This is electronic pop at its best.

The idea of getting lost in space doesn't sound so bad if you have Astronauts, etc. to float along with. Enjoy the songs below and check out more tracks on his SoundCloud.

Swell EP: Painted Palms - Nothing Lasts Long EP [psych-pop / synth-pop]

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Painted Palms were "discovered" by Kevin Barnes (of Montreal ringleader) shortly after releasing their psychedelic surf pop debut Canopy EP back in 2011, which gave them much more exposure and the attention of Secretly Canadian Records, who re-released said EP later in the year. Much like that first EP, the San Francisco psych-pop duo's free EP Nothing Lasts Long is instantly likable and leaves you thirsty for more. Well, the two cousins Reese Donohue and Christopher Prudhomme have actually been working on their debut Polyvinyl full length to help us quench our thirst for over a year now, but threw us a curveball with this mixtape-style free download while we wait.

Filled with danceable beats, psychedelic melodies, tropical synths, and energetic Panda Bear-stained vocals, Painted Palms' Nothing Lasts Long EP gives a us a taste of what's to come while giving them a break from the stress of releasing an official debut:

Making this EP was a bit of a release. It felt refreshing to make 6 songs with the intention of putting them out immediately. A whole album can seem monolithic and you can easily get lost in your head, so it was nice to write under different circumstances. —Impose Magazine interview

Download the EP for free at their Bandcamp page and enjoy the 6 new tracks below.

Artist Making Waves: Hibou [tropical pop / dream pop / shoegaze]

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Hibou is the solo project of former Craft Spells drummer and 19-year-old Seattle native, Peter Michel. Seeing as 'hibou' is French for 'owl', it is pronounced quite Frenchly—"eee-booo". Because one of my pet peeves is hearing mispronunciations of another French-based indie band name, Bon Iver, I figured I'd set the record straight so I won't have to cringe hearing things like "high-bow" or "hih-boo". Anyway, my instincts tell me that Michel named his project thus because he considers himself a 'night owl', or maybe he prefers to write, record, and hunt mice after the sun goes down. Either way, his upbeat music is definitely meant to soundtrack a beautiful, sunny day, but it wouldn't hurt to throw it on at your next dance party.

While borrowing the dream pop elements of his old band and mixing in his brand of vibrant surf-poppy guitar hooks and danceable tropical drum beats (see "Hollow") or progressive shoegaze drumming (see "Glow"), Michel produces Hibou—a perfect concoction of hazy beach pop that I would file next to bands like Wild Nothing, Beach Fossils, Diiv, and Kisses. Hell, just sign him to Captured Tracks already!

Hibou's Dunes EP is due out June 13 via Fat Cat Records so grab yourself a copy when it drops. In the meantime, you can listen to a handful of songs below and download them for free or in pay-what-you-want-style by clicking the "Download" or "Name your price" buttons on the players.

Just Rolled In: Poliça - "Tiff (feat. Justin Vernon)" [indie rock / electronic pop / R&B]

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Following their collaboration with Bon Iver's Justin Vernon at Coachella this past weekend, Minneapolis, Minnesota's Poliça have released the single version of the moody, atmospheric song "Tiff" in which Vernon and lead singer Channy Leaneagh share vocal duties. This is the first new music we've heard since last year's beloved debut Give You the Ghost.

"Tiff" continues the soaring indie-rock-and-R&B-infused electronic pop sound that got heads bobbing on Give You the Ghost but could possibly be mistaken for an unreleased B-side of Justin Vernon and Poliça members Leanagh and Ryan Olson's soft rock supergroup Gayngs. The soulful voices of both Vernon and Leaneagh are passed through filters and blended into one another, as per usual with their aforementioned supergroup, to be braided in nicely with the brooding synths and the sensual bass line that carries this slow-burner. With a slow song this good, I can't wait to hear the faster material from Poliça's upcoming sophomore release.

Listen to "Tiff" below with a couple other different sounding standout tracks from Poliça's debut album, which you can buy here. Keep an eye out for their followup record being released later this year.

Artist Making Waves: S O H N [electronic soul / minimal electro pop]

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S O H N is a producer/singer/multi-instrumentalist originally from London who currently resides in Vienna, Austria. His recent move to Vienna has played a key role in his songwriting as themes of loneliness, starting over, and realization-that-things-aren't-so-bad are delicately strewn over his intricately multi-layered minimal electronic backdrop with his soulful, captivating voice and countered with his stuttering vocal sample that blends perfectly with the complex beat.

S O H N's first single "The Wheel" from his debut EP with the same name demonstrates these themes when he opens with "I died a week ago / There's nothing left / It's caught on video / The very last breath", and calms himself down at the end with the same smooth voice that has been relaxing us: "All this fuss over nothing / Reinventing the wheel / All this searching for something / That's not real".

Believe me – his lovely, addictive sound keeps rolling beyond "The Wheel". Check it out along with the newly released slow-building single "Bloodflows" and a few others below from S O H N's Soundcloud to fully experience his seductive electronic pop. You can buy the 2012 The Wheel EP here.