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The Columbus, Ohio-based three piece Emeralds has, since 2006, been mining the depths of ambient music. Picking up their instruments in the maelstrom that is, both literally and musically, underground experimental, these three men have forged a path through sonic collage and disparate ambient noise.

Early efforts, found on Wagon Tapes and other underground labels, suggest contemplative aesthetics. The music itself is thinking; you can join or not. These early songs also routinely surpassed a dozen minutes. But the music was not bound to that obscure vintage for long.

Their music took on increasingly melodic distinctions; by Solar Bridge, released in 2008, sound collage was replaced with slow building beauty, something that remains a staple of their arsenal. Even this evolved, as demonstrated in the 2009 songs "Living Room" from What Happened and "Passing Away" from Emeralds. Their first release of the new decade takes this growing penchant for melody and turns the dial to 11.

No longer satisfied by the slow build, all but one song on Does It Look Like I'm Here? come under 10 minutes, a startling 180 for a band so steeped in ambient forms. It's not without reward; this disc will almost certainly be their most popular release. The climax of "Candy Shoppe" is M83-esque with its warm synth tones and Dan Deacon-esque with its circular refrain. Yet, the song is still very Emeralds; it is, forgive the pun, refined Emeralds, there essence distilled and purified.

The songs immediately following it and populating the album later, including "The Cycle of Abuse" and "Goes By," find a more authentic Emeralds sound, one obsessed with the music's inner workings and quietude. But soon, "Genetic" hits and swirls, the album's sonic centerpiece. The synth lines that begin a little after four minutes leap out, suggesting that mid-90s electronica touchstone Orbital. If Emeralds had a fourth member with a drum machine, this song would be the hottest jam for the next two months.

The only thing keeping these songs from falling into electronica is the utter artistic insistence that dancing is not a given. If you watch videos of Emeralds, the audience sits, taking in the experience, not unlike a night at the opera. Sure the band rocks out; if they didn't, you'd have no sense that a human had created this music, that instead it was being beamed from outer space directly into your brain, from an alien mothership, bypassing all sonic apparatus, injecting itself into your life under its own agency.

Music is the transitive verb, we the objects by which is transitions.

Emeralds - Candy Shoppe

Emeralds - Genetic

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Hello friends,

I officially survived a thrilling trip to Austin last week for SXSW. I did not have a badge, but instead reaped the benefits of corporate sponsorship in the form of free shows, everywhere, all the time. I tried my best to pack in as much musical goodness as possible, and will give you a quick review of my experiences. Keep reading below...

I was in Austin from Monday night until Saturday, prime-SXSW time which spanned from Wednesday to Sunday, officially. Unofficially the party went on all week. For those of you that don't know what SXSW is, it is a set of interactive, film, and music festivals and conferences that takes place in Austin annually. Over 1,400 musical acts play over 80 venues throughout the week. I tried to structure my schedule around bands I knew and wanted to see, and then pop in to things I have not heard before as well. The acts I saw were: Peter and the Wolf, Toro y Moi, Anni Rossi, The Choir of Young Believers, Washed Out, The Ruby Suns, The XX, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, Neon Indian, Lemonade, Javelin, Delorean, The Octopus Project, Andrew W.K., The Dum Dum Girls, Real Estate, The Hood Internet, Surfer Blood, Danielson, All Get Out, and Warpaint. Phew. It would probably take too long to talk about all the shows, so I'll just highlight the ones I enjoyed the most. 

The XX, as one of my current favorites, was obviously great. They played an awesome set despite some technical difficulties and raged on some cymbals.

Warpaint, an all-female rock group that just finished touring with Akron/Family, blew me away. They played a few of their songs off of "Exquisite Corpse", an amazing set that combines soft acoustic songs with heavy rock jams.  Lead singer Jenny Lee's sultry vocals added a fresh twist, and watching them perform led me to believe they like and know what they are doing. Reminded me most of Can, a 1970s German experimental rock group. 

The Choir of Young Believers came all the way from Denmark to perform. I caught them as I was holding my front row spot for Neon Indian, who were less impressive following the Young Believers. Jannis Noya Makrigiannis heads up the band as composer, lead vocals, and guitar. He performed with a female cellist and keyboardist, male drummer and male bassist. They were all very interesting and stylish to watch, with their Nordic charms, so that was half the fun. The cellist performed in a Burberry trench coat, which I thought was awesome....but anyway....apparently Jannis switches up the line-up as he performs, working with up to 8 musicians at a time. The songs were emotional ballads, as Jannis and the female cellist sang mournful harmonies and the balance of cello, guitar, and light percussion filled the venue.

It would take me forever to talk about all the groups that performed at SXSW, and honestly I tried not to look too hard at the line-ups of what I was missing because it just made me sad. I enjoyed all the groups I saw, and was surprised to see how young most of them were. There is some great talent budding as we speak. Despite short, disorganized sets, hoards of sweaty, drunk people, and not getting to see She & Him (tear), I definitely want to go back next year. Oh, did I mention I only paid for one show - Andrew W.K., and it was only $5? Yes, what a great thing this music festival is. Not to mention all the tacos. Oh, the tacos.

Warpaint - Elephants

Choir of Young Believers - Next Summer

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I went to the Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt!  show when they were at DC9, and it totally fulfilled my expectations. It was wild, fun, crowd pleasing, thought provoking, multi-sensory, and even, ya know, musically good. Also, dark and hard to shoot, but I took some photos, above, and there are even more here. Tour dates here. Definitely see these guys, it's a blast.

Terror Pigeon Dance Revolt! - Fast Forward Regrets

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Casual listeners will enjoy The Heligoats playful blend of folk twang with the staple comforts of indie rock--"Fish Sticks" jumps off the release as a fun and frenetic four minutes of talented riffing and jamming. And most will enjoy Otepka's tireless energy as he fills nearly every vacant second with rambling lyrics and big, hearty choruses. Still, "Fish Sticks" holds up to multiple listens with a lyrical richness that defines this entire release--The Heligoats are deft lyricists and "Fish Sticks" is overstuffed with peppy and energetic visual language. The noise-making--itself quite wonderful--is just a conveyance for the well crafted words to pour out, and in doing so, leave the listener with the palpable sense The Heligoats are having a great time and with Goodness Gracious, we're luckily invited along for the ride. 

The Heligoats - Fish Sticks

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DC local brother-duo Hays and Ryan Holladay, also known as "Bluebrain" put on a great show this past Saturday night (1/16) at The Fridge, a small warehouse-esque gallery space behind the Capital. Openers included talented artists DJ Autorock, as well as Outputmessage. Autorock appropriately pumped everyone up and kept them dancing prior to and after the music sets finished with fresh mash-ups drawing on R&B, rock, pop and electro to get feet tappin with funky beatz. Outputmessage sang over electronic compositions, working his computer with mic in hand. Although there was hesitance to dance at the beginning, a few people held it down on the dance floor until about 200 people showed up, filling the building and keeping it moving. Bluebrain ended the show with a bang, each brother set up with their own podium holding all their devices necessary to produce their futuristic beats. Ryan and Hays both sang over their catchy songs, full of space sounds, percussion, and keyboard. Everyone got their dance on by this point, hypnotized by the intensity of the music coupled with video footage of snakes, face morphs, and hovercrafts.The evening itself was a fun, free alternative to bar-hopping and displayed the great local talent that exists in the DC area! Bluebrain successfully combined dance party with art display with socializing. Hopefully we will see more concerts and art shows at The Fridge, as well as more from Bluebrain and Co. 

Bluebrain released a free EP this past fall entitled "Cult Following", and will be releasing their full length album, "Soft Power", in February. Bluebrain has some shows coming up that aren't listed yet, so check in on their website for more info.

All Photos by Rachel Eisley.

Bluebrain - Cult Following

AutoRock Remix of Deleted Scenes Song - Ithaca (AutoRock Remix)

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Rick Deckard, pilots his floating car through dystopian Los Angeles. Andriods flee from Deckard and he chases them through a maze of neon lights and derelict marketplaces. Visions of Blade Runner pulse in my head while listening to French musician, Etienne Jaumet's debut album Night Music. Produced by the famous Detriot techno producer Carl Craig, Night Music is a minimalistic, reverberating and tense voyage into the future. The first track is titled "For Falling Asleep"; perhaps implying that you're meant to doze off somewhere during its 20 minutes of bass drone, vibrating synth lines, eerie resonating chants and cool saxophone. But you won't sleep. You'll travel to mars.

Etienne Jaumet - Entropy

Etienne Jaumet - Through the Strata

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You weren't thinking of Christmas music in August, but, if you're anything like me, you're up to your eyeballs in it now. It's not exactly the quintessence of avant garde or cutting edge --most of the genre is a soup of sucrose and tired standards. They evoke memories of puberty, of awkward family gatherings, yes--but seldom do they speak to creativity and emerging talent within the music industry.

Thankfully, Lauren Zettler and Cameron Mizell, here playing as Be Still, were thinking--all the way back in August--of how they could elevate the otherwise tired genre of holiday music. And, one listen to Zettler's wispy vocals and Mizell's deft touch to support Zettler's powerful voice with a range of sounds that evokes the blustery days of winter, you'll quickly forget this EP was made in the waning days of summer. 

The 10-song EP achieves what few holiday albums can--be at once holiday music--vaguely familiar and cozy--and still, exceptional music. Listeners will gravitate, I suspect, toward the duo's original track, "Sounds Like Snow", and that's logical. These two have already shown themselves to be capable songwriters as Zettler's On Your Back Porch so clearly demonstrated. Mizell's slow guitar strums create a decidedly frosty aura. Zettler serves up her distinctively breathy voice--and soon, they've made good on their promise. 

A "Silent Night" with a heavy dose reverbing electric guitar adds a touch of unpredictable to the very familiar. In doing so, it demonstrates not only the skills of two music talents, but it defines a creative energy that runs throughout the album--comfortably classic tunes do not have to sound like elevator music. (Don't take my word for it: Be Still is offering the track as a freebie for holidays through Mizell's website).

In a folk-rock-indie vein, they have slowed down many of these songs, bringing back to them a purity, a musicality that was lost and corrupted by years of big bands and Bob Dylan. Mizell carefully sets a mood that gives the music lover to hear all the instruments at work here--it is slow, reflective, and thoughtful as it is thought-provoking. It's the kind of music that makes you sit and stare at snow and think about how the holidays, thanks to Be Still, does not need to sound like a cartoon anymore. 

Be Still - Sounds Like Snow

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Hailing from Perry, Georgia, Washed Out consists of Ernest Greene and some synthesizers. Forced to move home with his parents after college graduation like sooo many others, Greene used his free time to work on his music. This move strangely ended up being...a positive post-graduation plan. Greene recently released an EP appropriately entitled Life of Leisure, available on 12" and digitally via his myspace. Greene is riding the wave back to the 80s, where songs are beginning to sound more like they were recorded on cassette from being played on the television. But, that's what makes the songs so great! This new(ish) gritty sound evident in Greene's project produces some danceable tunes, deep and dreamlike with a solid beat, along with some mysterious lyrics. On November 20th, Washed Out will play with Toro y Moi, a similarily 80's sounding solo project written about previously.

Washed Out - Feel It All Around

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At once a University of Georgia student and at the same time a touring singer-songwriter, Allison Weiss is looking to make it big. And, with a sound that has always flirted with commercially comfortable, Weiss' crooning sounds equally apropos as a pitch for a new MacBook as it does an anthem for romantic angst. For a full time college student, Weiss is a busy and shameless self-promoter--hawking her albums and harnessing the power of the web to build a fan following. Through Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, iLike, and YouTube, she has crafted a brand--supporting her music with a blur of goodies and tchotchkes that appeal to an increasingly wired teenage population.

Photo by Cara Cortese.

It's been just over a year since her last major release, conceivably long enough for Weiss to date and breakup with a boy; to provide fodder for yet another installment of work in a growing cannon of work that is painfully adherent to the "boy breaks girl's heart" genre. From unabashedly indie Athens, GA, Allison Weiss is something of an anomaly; living in the space between pop tartlets and over stylized, tragically cool indie rock. Previous work has revealed a deft touch in balancing catchy with creative, but early selections from her newest album, "...was right all along" veer more than ever before in to 'catchy' territory.The result is a sound that is still ever reminiscent of a purer version of Weiss, but produced to a tidy end that removes the charms that came from her acoustic sound. The single "Fingers Crossed" is an enjoyable, if not predictable riff--but Weiss' wispy vocals are washed out by a busy drumline. For a singer-songwriter whose lyrics are generally pretty transparent, "Fingers Crossed" was a challenging meditation on boys and staying dry. Or at least that's what it seems like. The refreshing, summery "From You to Me" is distinctly Allison Weiss, with a peppiness that blends post-teen angst tartness with a tasty, sweet, quirkiness. It's a bubbly, perky two and a half minutes--and while it doesn't reinvent the pop music wheel, it is comfortable like an old blanket--cozy and unpretentious. Not fussy. Still, behind the pretty sounds, the comfortable melodies, are lyrics rich with heartache. Careful listeners will find a bitter pill of pain and romantic plight behind the sweetness and quirk of Weiss' foot-tapping-worthy melodies. 

This is the summery CD to an adventurous compilation released two years ago, "Winter Mixtape". There, largely without production, Allison strums and croons--and the result is both darker, sadder, and reveals the extent of her strengths as a guitarist and vocalist. She's taking her new act on a limited roadshow, and bringing her self-described 'shameless self-promotion' along: selling "Allison Weiss is okay, I guess" t-shirts after each show. Or, pick up a button with her unofficial pancake logo on it. It, like Allison herself a playful mix of syrupy sweet and classically satisfying. 

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Phenomenal Handclap Band is a seven piece touring band that plays funky, dancy music that one might be tempted to call groovy. Their self-titled album came out in June on Friendly Fire. I met up with them at the start of their tour, in their van behind the 930 club in DC.

 PHB: Now that you're here, would you mind taking one of these pills?

 EML: Well, if I have to. So, NPR called you guys the 'perfect mix of everything from the last forty years of popular music'. How do you respond?

 PHB:  [in unison] Thank you!

 EML: Eight is a lot of people. How does that go?

 Daniel:  Well now, as far as touring band, it's seven. This is the first time we're going to try  this. My production partner, who we produced and wrote the record together, he's going to stay home a lot more and do more of the the day to day stuff, like at the studio, at the headquarters type of thing. So now it's seven, on the road. He's with us in NY, and in spirit.

 It's a lot of people, a lot of personalities to wrangle, but really the only problem I ever find with this many people in a group is getting people's schedules together for rehearsal, mundane things like that. We get along really well.

 EML: How do you guys feel about filesharing, mp3s, that whole thing?

 Daniel: It's kinda great, so much music is available. Especially older music, I don't feel bad about getting stuff like older music, because that stuff has already been out there. But obviously it's kinda a drag, because like, when we first put out the record, before it was even released, it was up on all these blogs. It makes you really aware of what that really means: file sharing. You don't really think of it as a big deal unless you're directly related to the outcome, to the line of fire. People would blog about us and put  entire album, and it's like, why would you do this? Kind of a drag.

 [Brief interlude in which I break the dome light in their van.]

 EML: You've played here a few times recently. How do you find DC?

 PHB: Yeah we were here in the Summer and in September. In the Summer, at dc9, we loved it. That gig was really good. This place really takes care of you well too, so it's great. DC has been one of our first major out of new york city US cities.

EML: How do you find DC people compared to NYC people?

Daniel: Definitely different, seems more collegiate for some reason.

Laura :I lived here for a year before I moved to new york, and there's a really good music scene. You have Adams Morgan, with all those live bands. And the Black Cat has great local bands too. Really cool.

EML:  So...Witch doctor?

Daniel: Ha, yeah. Some antiquated nickname I got. The first record Sean and I made was in Brazil. We consulted this spiritual guy, kind of a witch doctor himself, a medicine man, did this whole divining process. There was this thing he did, and this loose translation, and he told me...'you are the witch doctor'. This kinda white magic thing we consulted down there.

Joan: It was actually black magic, but he's editing it.

EML: Joan, you write fiction?

Joan: I do, I write short stories, and some non fiction as well.

EML: Do you find that your musical experience informs that?

Joan: I do! I think writing ficiton is really musical. Structurally, and how you use language, I feel like it's such a musical process, in a lot of ways you're utilizing the same tools in abstract ways. I've also written some short stories that correlate to songs.

The Phenomenal Handclap Band - Baby

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Know Better Learn Faster, the third full-length offering from California-based Thao with the Get Down Stay Down drops October 13. Its a Kamikaze shot on the outside, a Jack-on-rocks on the inside, and a ton of fun.

It has many of the elements that made the last record, We Brave Bee Stings and All, so enjoyable. Singer-songwriter Thao Nguyen is again displaying her abundant prowess combining vivid, deliciously cynical lyrics with bouncy, feelgood melodies. The instrumentation is also in fine form; rhythmic guitars and keys fill up the sound and add just enough texture to be interesting without being intrusive. And everybody loves the occasional smattering of handclaps and “hey hey” refrains.

Know Better Learn Faster also features a more mature side of the band, with tracks like The Give giving the record a touch of sobriety and allowing musicianship to rise above melodies every now and again.

The title track posted here, which Kill Rock Stars has put out on buyolympia.com, isn’t the best of the record in my mind. That dubious honor goes to the more energetic and infectious tracks such as Cool Yourself, When we Swam and Body. But I’m not posting those out of respect for copyrights and what not. (See that record companies? We’re nice! Send us stuff!)

Thao with the Get Down Stay Down - Know Better Learn Faster

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Photos! When Sunny Day Real Estate, Cymbals Eat Guitars, and The Pains of Being Pure at Heart are all playing the same night in DC, and you can still sell out your show at (admittedly small) DC9, you're probably doing something right. The Antlers played a great set, to an excited crowd. My fears that their melodic, sometimes soft, often swooping,  and always well produced songs wouldn't translate well to a live show were completely put to rest. They came hard at times, but went quiet too, and Peter Silberman's voice is just as strong as it is on the album.

The Antlers - Shiva (Live at Laundromatinee)

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Lots of photos here. I'm breaking my own rule: posting about a show that was never listed here, but in my defense, this show was sold out  long before we launched EML. And for good reason. Phoenix and Passion Pit both put on great performances, but I was really blown away by Phoenix. They were so entertaining, so powerful.

Also, I had no idea how closely they were related to Daft Punk. Phoneix guitarist Laurent Brancowitz, played with those guys in a band called Darlin', which released a few tracks in the early '90s, one of which is below (Sam should like it). Melody Maker reviewed their release, and called it a bunch of "daft punk", and Brancowitz left to join Phoenix, while the Bangalter and Homem-Christo adopted that name.

See Phoenix if you can, though it seems their only not sold out tour dates in North America are in Canada in December. Brrr.

Crossposted at the excellent PopMatters.

Darlin' - Darlin'

Phoenix - Everything is Everything

I assume that many of you (myself included) were captivated by the rapture and sorrow of Bon Iver's For Emma, Forever Ago last year. And while we patiently wait for a new album, Justin Vernon still offers us the gift of his voice in the meanwhile. Jajaguwar presents us with their new gem, Volcano Choir.

Volcano Choir is the collaboration of Justin Vernon and members of Collections of Colonies of Bees. This wonderful group of musicians explore their most beloved and brilliant influences in their full length debut, Unmap. Their creation is experimental and dynamic. It is crafted with imagination and affection. Vernon's voice is an instrument by itself, haunting and cavernous. There appear to be lyrics, but don't strain yourself to make out what they are because it really doesn't matter. Enjoy this record for what it is — simply beautiful music. 

Volcano Choir - Island, IS

Time To Die, The Dodos third full length album dropped Tuesday, after leaking months ago.

It's great. Complex, interesting, full of pop and polish. Meric Long and Logan Kroeber are technical masters, and producer Phil Ek (The Shins, Fleet Foxes) obviously knows his stuff as well.

But, perhaps due to Ek's influence, or maybe on their own, this release de-emphasizes my favorite part of Visiter, that which set The Dodos' music apart from other (on face) similar tunes: the amazing drumming (may or may not have been ewe drumming) which worked so perfectly with Metric's folky but percise guitar, and created syncopated fun that everyone seemed pleased with. It's still there, and it's still awesome in Time To Die, it's just not the star anymore.

It must be hard to follow up a successful release like Visiter.  Can't to change too little and bore people, can't change too much and risk  fans and their identity. Time to Die walks this line, and walks it well, my complaints aside. Go buy it.

I'm also extremely excited to see these guys live. Dates below.

The Dodos - Two Medicines

The Dodos - The Strums