New and Recent Releases Dec 09

More new and recent releases from kiwi artists.

Following the great Happy Ending album and solo albums from almost all of the band, and ahead of a much-anticipated new album in 2010, the Phoenix Foundation have released a "not really anything to do with" Christmas EP titled Merry Kriskmas. The EP was recorded during the album sessions and sounds like the band wanted to loosen up and have some fun. Buy the CD or downloads from Amplifier and apparently there will be limited edition 12' vinyl version available soon.

Bachelorette (Annabel Alpers) has been creating great music right from her first EP but her last album My Electric Family was the album I had always hoped she would make, she brought in other musicians which gave more richness and a more organic feel to her songs. Six months after that album her American label has released a limited edition single of a song that doesn't appear on the album, 'The Circuit'. On this single Bachelorette is back to the solo vocal, synth and drum machine approach - writing performing, mixing and producing the songs with only a co-mixing credit on one song going to Dale Cotton. The song is infectious with a warm sound and la-la-la choruses and, of course, her great voice.

I've been a fan of Urbantramper since I heard the line 'I'm 24 and all I've got is this crochet hat and a shitty flat" on a A Low Hum compilation a few years back. Urbantrampers third album Tokon and The Colours is a real gem and highly recommended. Now comes Rise and Ride Toward - sounding a little happier than the shitty flat days but still whimsical. You can find out the Urbantramper story at http://urbantramper.blogspot.com

I've featured New Zealand music that has been posted on the Free Music Archive in an earlier episode of Counting The Beat but a recent kiwi addition to that collection is a set performed live on new York freeform radio station WFMU by The Axemen, a band in their 28th year of indie, punk mayhem. Forming to play protest gigs against the Springbok tour the core trio have seen off dozens of band mates and on the strengh of this recording as vital as they were back in the day.

Young noisy Auckland four piece Nevernudes have just released a four track EP for free download from nevernudesrule.bandcamp.com. The EP was recorded by ex Mint Chick Michael Logie and you can hear a similar interest in angular jerky song structures.

An Emerald City released a self titled four track EP and then a magnificent album Circa Scaria, which became a thing of legend because of having been recorded in a cave. Even without that back story it is memorable for it's huge Eastern influenced swelling noisescapes. Shortly after the albums release the band took off to Berlin but now they're back in New Zealand and they've have released a new song 'Seizuretron'. Like past numbers the song builds in scale and grandeur although the the Eastern instrumentation is less to the fore. A welcome return.

Download the Counting The Beat - New Releases Dec 09 podcast

Don't miss the next episode of Counting The Beat: Counting The Beat Podcast RSS