New Dum Dum Girls - Wish You Well (Demo)

There isn't much info on this brand new Dum Dum Girls demo "Wish You Well," other than a tiny description  from band member Dee Dee on the Soundcloud page:

"Hummed this a long time ago in bed ... lullaby with Sammy Nikdel on guitar."

Listen here.

New Dum Dum Girls video - Lord Knows

"Lord Knows," this beautiful new track from the Dum Dum Girls' brand new End Of Daze EP, has a brand new video. Check it out below.

Dum Dum Girls - End Of Daze (EP Stream)

Dum Dum Girls' newest EP End Of Daze won't be out officially until September 25, but Sub Pop is streaming all five tracks already. It's what you expect from the all-girl foursome; glorious lo-fi, 60s-inspired pop, rich in dreamy vocals. Check the whole thing out below.

New Dum Dum Girls video - Coming Down

Easily one of my favorite songs from 2011, Dum Dum Girls' Mazzy Star-esque epic "Coming Down" has been given the video treatment. And if you're watching, you'll notice the vague familiarity with Yoko Ono's "Cut Piece" performance art from 1965. Watch the newer video below, which was shortened from the original version for time.

Albums of the Month - February 2012

Albums of the Month - February 2012

There's an ounce of guilt here, never completing what I considered to be the best albums of January. Part apathy, part neglect, and part of no albums really capturing my attention, January 2012 is forgotten. But rather than tread on the mistakes, I'd rather just get back to normal and act like it never happened. So, it never did. And here are my three favorite albums from February.

3. Islands - A Sleep & A Forgetting
There's no sense in cuing in on the Islands sound anymore. Every album since the 2006 debut Return to the Sea is an offshoot of Nick Thorburn's most memorable experiment with The Unicorns in the early 2000s, in some distorted way. Yet collectively, A Sleep & A Forgetting stands out as Thorburn's most cohesive output in the past six years, stringing charmingly underscored songs - all of which could be theoretically packaged as singles. There's nothing cognitively outlandish here, unlike the aforementioned Unicorns' single LP Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone?, but there doesn't have to be to admire the solid consistency of it all.

The Islands - A Sleep & A Forgetting (Insound)

2. Frankie Rose - Interstellar
Something about Frankie Rose always screamed bigger. Yet, Interstellar doesn't lampoon her name forward as one of pop's up-and-coming stars, but something more comfortable on its own. Her history is well-documented, being a former member of Crystal Stilts, Vivian Girls, and Dum Dum Girls, but with her excellent solo output, somehow completely separating herself from her past groupings.

She does sound bigger, still, without launching herself too far out, often finding herself more comfortable in Cure-like synths and splitting echoing harmonies. What results is something that ends up being far more personable than those aforementioned groups, especially on tracks like "Pair of Wings," where we think of Rose more as person than a girl-band character. And in the end, we wind up wanting to know more about her.

Frankie Rose - Interstellar (Insound)

1. Perfume Genius - Put Your Back N 2 It
Truth behind it, Perfume Genius' Put Your Back N 2 It, despite the otherwise stupid album title, is the only record to truly stand out for me last month. The soft piano interludes, cosmic wherewithal, and folk renaissance vocal styles of Mike Hadreas make the listener forget the wholly tragic inspiration behind the album, touching on domestic abuse, death, drugs, and the every day love loss that human intervention seems to inspire. It endears as well, without strangling itself with the heavy subjects, because Handreas has figured out how to make those common tragic elements beautiful, if not subtle.

Perfume Genius - Put Your Back N 2 It (Insound)

Bears and Bullets Top 25 Songs of 2011: Part V

We'll continue our countdown today with songs #5 through #1.

#5: The Rapture - How Deep is Your Love?
There's a strong, clear attempt at profound meaning in Luke Jenner's wailing on "How Deep is Your Love?," the Rapture's love-cry to loss, both in this world and in Jenner's spiritual one. It's a sound difference from the band's previous stops, who are clearly focused on the religious side of things. In that, it's hard to make a band sound good when they look to religion for most of their material, but forgive the pathways to "How Deep is Your Love?" was made. It sounds good enough so no one on either side of the spiritual spectrum pays any mind.



#4: Bon Iver - Holocene
It's hard to not find something that resonates in Bon Iver; the soft-lulled sensibilities, the unconscious, yet artful construction, and Justin Vernon's ease to cast light on enlightening visual elements. "Holocene," the center-piece of Bon Iver, still sounds like Vernon circa 2007, but there's a level of depth that takes a few listens. The subtle instrumental movements take a quiet, serene song, and make it sound more lavish, almost contextual with nature, than it seems. Vernon's reliable falsetto paces through soft horns and marching drums, slowly carrying the air under "Holocene" up to a point where it seems majestic. And while some songs have an uncharacteristic ability to mimic nature, Bon Iver truly sound immersed in it.



#3: Dum Dum Girls - Coming Down
Dum Dum Girls have effectively cornered the Mazzy Star aesthetic on "Coming Down," which blasts heroically through the aforementioned Star-like vocals and Jesus and Mary Chain drum snares. While the influences do rain heavy, the band sounds surprisingly huge here, especially for a group that teetered on the fence of "which indie girl group is that again?" The four-piece set themselves apart with "Coming Down," effectively standing their ground on something that can be called as beautiful as it is memorable, going on for nearly seven minutes, without losing a step any way through.



#2: Tyler, The Creator - Yonkers
"Yonkers" should effectively go down as 2011's "Holy Shit" moment. Here's Tyler, The Creator, the head-piece of Odd Future, the biggest up-and-coming group in hip-hop, rapping about killing Bruno Mars, Columbine, cartoons, and being a totally non-understood rapper. "Yonkers" screams anti-rap, almost to a rounded punk nature. Rather than take the music too seriously, the 20-year-old Tyler opts to fuck with it, laughing in the game's stereotypes and coming through as a generally fucked-up mind. Maybe it's all in character, but "Yonkers" isn't just a showcase for an all character, no substance artist. Sometimes genuinely weird people make genuinely weird, interesting music.



#1: M83 - Midnight City
It feels like a cop-out, I get that. The same song that was on my #1 Album of 2011 and Pitchfork's pick for song of the year, makes it as #1 on Bears and Bullets Top 25 Songs of 2011. But that decision was made months ago when "Midnight City" leaked - before Hurry Up, We're Dreaming was released and before the Victoria's Secret ad caught a bit of national attention. "Midnight City" has all the proponents of a visionary M83 piece; the roaring, romantic vocals, stand-out synth work,and  memorable hooks. But the wailing, off-beat chorus of what sounds like animal shrieks blended in between and the totally out of nowhere sax solo during the climax make "Midnight City" stand out far, far more than any other track released this year. How all of those components were put together to make something not only memorable, but insanely invigorating, is something to be admired.



We'll that makes Bears and Bullets last post of 2011. Have a happy New Year, everyone, and I'll see you in 2012.

Bedroom Eyes

New Dum Dum Girls - Bedroom Eyes

I'm becoming slightly concerned that the Dum Dum Girls upcoming album Only In Dreams, which is scheduled for release September 27 via Sub Pop, is already one of my favorite albums of 2011. We've already heard the group's Mazzy Star-esque "Coming Down," which has already positioned itself on my annual Top 25 Songs of 2011 list, and today we get "Bedroom Eyes." It's not as sweeping and surprising as the former single, but there's not ignoring the quality put in.

You can listen to "Bedroom Eyes" below, or grab the MP3 over at Pretty Much Amazing.

Wednesday Bears: New Dum Dum Girls - Coming Down

This Dum Dum Girls track hit yesterday, but it's still very much worth mentioning. Their new song "Coming Down" is another continuation in the band's young career in a very (understated) positive direction. One day in, and it's easily one of my favorite songs of the summer, if not the entire year.

You can grab the group's upcoming album Only In Dreams September 27, via Sub Pop. Listen below or grab the download from Sub Pop here.

Dum Dum Girls - Coming Down by Bears and Bullets

Wednesday Bears: New Dum Dum Girls video - He Gets Me High

Yesterday, Dum Dum Girls released two videos: One, for their cover of Big Star's "September Gurls," the other for their lead single off their He Gets Me High EP, available now. It's got flowers and stuff, whatever you thought a Dum Dum Girls video would look like.

Dum Dum Girls - He Gets Me High

Dum Dum Girls cover Big Star

Maybe it's the recent Big Star surge I've been on that makes this a total coincidence, but Dum Dum Girls recently covered Alex Chilton's seminal "September Gurls," on the A.V. Club's web video series A.V. Undercover. It also lead me to discover that I'm not exactly sure what the majority of the band looks like without sunglasses.

Dum Dum Girls - September Gurls (Big Star Cover - Live on A.V. Undercover)