Warsaw

Joy Division originally called themselves Warsaw and had a full album recorded before they scrapped it and released Unknown Pleasures. The album, finally released in 1994 as Warsaw (both band name and album title), has a great raw punk edge to it and little of the self-indulgent mopiness that can (in my opinion) really get in the way of some of Joy Division's lesser songs. One of the songs, Warsaw, actually surfaced on Substance. My secret shame is that that song, the least Joy Division-esque song on the whole album, has always been one of my favorites. [Just like my favorite Woody Allen movie is Bullets Over Broadway because he doesn't actually appear in it, which puts me in the same league as Ned Flanders: "I'd like his movies if it weren't for that nervous fella that's always in them."] Don't know if the album is available on iTunes - kinda doubt it. But you can at least listen to clips from AllMusic.com and determine exactly how much of a Joy Division completist you are.

Crooning Troubadour

Anybody ever see the episode of Mr. Show where David Cross and Bob Odenkirk play "megaphone crooners", fictitious guys who were briefly all the rage in the pre-radio early 1900s and to the delight of the ladies, crooned lovesongs onstage into megaphones? Well, Mpls local artist Randall Throckmorton, the self-styled "Crooning Troubadour," definitely channels that look and sound (see 6th photo where he's singing into a "voice horn"). This is way outside my usual taste for Pavement/Guided by Voices/My Bloody Valentine - aping indie guitar rock, but RadioK has been playing a song by Throckmorton called Honeysuckle Vine that piqued my interest. You can download it here, along with several other songs. Recommended if you appreciate The Beatles' Honey Pie, particularly its intro. I don't know, might not be for everybody, but I kinda dig it...

The And/Ors

The And/Ors is, apparently, an indie rock supergroup of sorts, composed of former members of a bunch of bands of which I've never heard (not meant as a slam). Their first album (2001), Will Self Destruct, received rave reviews: see AllMusic.com or PopMatters.com. A short list of bands to which they've been compared: Dinosaur Jr, Pixies, My Bloody Valentine, Guided By Voices, Big Star, Pavement, Television, Replacements, and Sonic Youth. In other words, every beloved, influential alternative band of the last 30 years, so you're gonna love them.

Insound.com has 3 of their songs available for free downloading: As We Play the Tape Tricks Us, Flexiclocks, and Screams Nicole. The first 2 are my favorites but they're all good. Note that Screams Nicole is posted twice for some reason. These songs definitely show off the Pavement and GBV influences.

You can read more about the band on the website of their record label, Better Looking Records. That site also has 2 of the 3 downloads available on Insound.com.

Elefant

Elefant is NY band fronted by Argentinian singer Diego Garcia. Their music recalls some of the pomp, style, and drama of Morrissey and later Brit Pop groups. You can download 2 songs free from Insound.com. Both are good, but Misfit is especially catchy. I listen to this song about once a day. To wit, I'm listening to it right now...

Asobi Seksu

Asobi Seksu is NY band that channels My Bloody Valentine and Sonic Youth successfully, while bringing in its own sensibility. How can I not make a comparison to Blonde Redhead - arty SY-influenced NY band with a Japanese female vocalist (the rest of the band, however, does not consist of male Italian identical twins, so there ends the similarity). You can get four free songs from the band's website. Sooner is the most MBV-ish of the tracks (perhaps a response to the MBV classic Soon?). I'm Happy But You Don't Like Me is bouncy dream pop with Japanese lyrics. Walk on the Moon is slower and dramatic. The last track, Let Them Wait, is sung by the male guitarist and reminds me of early Blonde Redhead and by extension, Sonic Youth. The songs are all off the band's self-titled debut. Looks like the album is available on iTunes, if you want to check out other tracks.

Exploding Hearts

The Exploding Hearts were an amazing band in the punk tradition of The Jam, The Buzzcocks, and The Clash. I say were because, unfortunately, 3 out 4 members of the band died in a van wreck on the way home from a show; only their bassist and manager survived. Nevertheless, they left behind one great album - Guitar Romantic, released in 2003. The album is great, start to finish. One reviewer described it as The Clash if Mick Jones had written all the songs. I only stumbled across the band/album by accident after downloading a free track from Nexus Underground. The track, Rumours In Town, is one of the standouts from an album that has no weak moments. Modern Kicks is also especially good. But really, get the whole album. I downloaded it from eMusic.com but iTunes has it as well.

Grahan Coxon (ex-Blur)

Up until a few years ago, Graham Coxon was the guitarist for Britpop giants Blur. He's released several solo albums, before and after he left the band, with varying critical success. However, his latest album, Happiness in Magazines, has been getting a lot of positive press. Read more about it at AllMusic.com. So far, I've downloaded the two singles:

- Spectacular
- Freakin' Out

If you loved the indie rock sound of post-Park Life Blur (think Song 2 - you know, the "Whoooo-hooooo!" song), then you'll love these songs! And if you're wondering why Blur's most recent and first post-Coxon album sucked, you may have an answer.

Sloan

Sloan is a great power pop band from Halifax, Nova Scotia, that's been around since 1991. Years ago, I was introduced to them by accident. My first choice of a free CD with my Magnet subscription wasn't available so they sent me Sloan's 1998 album Navy Blues instead. After my initial disappointment, I realized that the album was the greatest 70's power pop album not actually recorded during that decade. I strongly recommend the album.

I hadn't kept up with Sloan on subsequent releases or dug into their back catalog, but I just downloaded some AllMusic-recommended tracks from their latest album, Action Pact, from eMusic.com. The tracks rock, and I'd definitely recommend them:

- Gimme That
- False Alarm
- I Was Wrong

I probably will check out the rest of the album when I have more eMusic credits next month. You can listen to samples at Sloan's website, although they all seem to be for RealPlayer. :(    iTunes probably has their stuff, too.